Falling
by Hex Arcadia
Summary: Sometimes things need to fall apart, so they can fall back together again. For Link, his entire world shattered around him with his wife's infidelity. Now he's left exploring forgiveness he can't seem to give, and a new friendship that has him wondering how the pieces can fit back together into a new pattern. *Link Neal/Christy Neal, Link Neal/OC* RATED M!
1. You Can Try

**Hey, and welcome to Falling! I had a dream that inspired this story and I'm so excited to get it out there! Please make sure you leave a comment if you like it, since your love keeps me motivated. Thanks! -HEX**

 ***Song for this Chapter: Hold Back the River- James Bay***

For as long as Link could remember, from even a young age, he had wanted a family. He had wanted a beautiful wife and bouncing babies that he could show unconditional love. When he had met Christy, when he had seen her pretty face in the line at the skating rink his junior year of college, he had almost been hit by a car because he was so drawn to her that he wandered aimlessly through the parking lot toward her. The car horn that sounded had jolted him, and he had been so embarrassed until he had glanced up and seen the flush across Christy's freckled nose. She was so, so pretty. From the ends of her blonde hair to the tips of her painted toes, Link had adored her instantly.

When they had started dating, Link knew immediately he wanted to marry her. She had a warmth about her; a bright radiance that sunk into his skin and touched his core. He loved her so much, and the happiest day of his life was the day that she agreed to become his wife. When she had taken his last name he couldn't keep his grin from paining his cheeks, and he had been in awe of how soft and wonderful she was. The way her eyes twinkled when they had found out she was pregnant, the way she had jumped with joy when they found out it was a baby girl, the way she had calmed him when she had been in labor even though she was the one having the baby...

She had given Link the one thing he had never had; a healthy, beautiful, intact family that he had longed for since the day his Daddy had left his Mama. The pain of their divorce had hit him hard, and he hadn't understood at first that it wasn't his fault. He remembered apologizing to his Dad over and over, promising to be a good boy and pick up all his toys every day if he would just stay home. He hadn't, and Link had to learn how to be a man without his daddy around. When he had gotten older he had seen more of him, but what Link wouldn't give to have been able to see Charles every day when it mattered.

With Christy, he had been given the chance to give his kids what he hadn't been able to have; a real father.

Link had been there for every bedtime story and had chased away every monster from under the bed. Link had kissed every boo-boo and had even learned to braid when Lily had decided that was the only style she wanted to wear in her hair. He had learned to love baseball when Lincoln joined little league, and he hadn't missed a single game. Lando had been different. Lando had been born out of a different type of circumstance. He was the saving grace, the miracle baby that would fix everything and for a while, it had worked. Lando was the baby he and Rhett had introduced to the Mythical Beasts, the youngest face of the Neals and the sweetest little boy Link had ever known.

He had vowed that he'd love their Mama through sickness and health, for better or worse, and till death do them part. Well, he supposed that day he had found Christy with another man had felt like dying anyway.

"Hey man, you planning on doing something productive today or am I working solo?"

Link jumped at the sound of Rhett's voice. "I'm sorry," he ran a hand over his face and glanced at his best friend of over 30 years, "I ain't all here right now. I'm sorry. Sorry."

Link didn't mind sharing an office with Rhett. It made sense to have a shared workspace since their business was split right down the middle, and they were used to doing everything together anyway. It was only times like this when he wasn't fully committed to what he was doing, that he minded it at all. Even then, he only minded it because he thought he might bother Rhett when he became distant like he just had.

Rhett had stopped typing and had leaned forward on his right arm, "you wanna talk about it?"

Did Link want to talk about it? Rhett knew what had happened. He had found out when Link showed up on his doorstep red-faced and sobbing, blubbering like an idiot as a panic attack had nearly suffocated him. The panic attack had actually been the only thing that had kept Rhett at bay when Link had finally stuttered through the hyperventilating long enough to tell the big man what he had seen. Rhett had been ready to come to blows. Nobody hurt his Linkster.

"What's the point, man," Link sighed and rested his head in his hands, "ain't gonna change anything."

"S'pose not, but you sitting there keeping it all in ain't doing nothing for you either."

Link pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes until he saw stars. Rhett was right, as usual. It had been almost four months since he had caught his wife with another man, and it still felt like yesterday sometimes.

"It's just...sometimes when I close my eyes," Link sat back and looked at Rhett again, "it's like it just happened. I can see them there, in _my_ bed...and I get, I feel, I just..." He huffed in frustration.

"I know, man, I can't even think of what I'd do if I were you. How I'd feel. Only thing I do know is I wouldn't be sleeping on my couch while my cheating whore of a..."

"Hey man, don't call her that!" Link felt defensive.

He knew that Rhett was pissed off, and he was okay with that, but something didn't sit right when Rhett called Christy nasty names. She might have messed up, but she was still the mother of his kids and that had to mean something.

Rhett put his hands up in a gesture of mock surrender. "I know, you don't like when I talk truth about Christy..."

"Rhett..."

"...but she wasn't there when you almost died on my doorstep because your brain couldn't figure out how to make your lungs work man."

Rhett had held Link in his arms when he had collapsed and had stroked his sweat-soaked hair in a manner that might have seemed inappropriate to anyone but Jessie. She just stomped around near the doorway and muttered things about "that bitch" while wringing her hands and shaking her head. Both Rhett and Jessie had taken offense to the act Christy had been caught doing, and though Jessie had been more forgiving with time due to the circumstances of Christy being her friend, Rhett was truly loyal to Link and hated anyone that hurt him. He still vowed to find the man that had been pounding Link's wife, and give him a pounding of his very own that wouldn't be as nice.

"Yeah, thanks again." Link mumbled.

"Look, Link, I know why you're doing it, okay. I know you agreed that you'd try to make things work because of the kids. I'd probably do the same thing. I know you love them, I love Locke and Shepherd as much as you love Lily, Lincoln, and Lando..."

"Where you going with this man, ain't I had enough for today?" Link smacked a hand on his desk, and a few pencils rolled away in protest. It was always the same. They'd start talking, and Link would feel the anxiety creep back up his spine like a bunch of tiny spiders. Any mention of his children, any mention of how this might affect them and Link's innards turned an icy cold.

Rhett blinked a few times before replying, "What do you think the kids are thinking when Daddy ain't talked to Mommy in months? You ain't even been home two months yet, and already Lily and Lincoln are asking Jessie if they can come over every weekend because they can't stand seeing you and Christy in the same room as each other."

Link had stayed with Rhett for about two months, taking up in the finished basement that Rhett had made into a sort of game room. At first, he had ignored Christy's calls, and she didn't dare show up at Rhett's front door. She did drop the kids off from time to time on her own accord, Link thought Jessie might have had something to do with that, but for a solid month, Link didn't have any contact with his wife. He didn't know what to say to her, and part of him was scared that when he did finally confront her, regardless of the infidelity, the ambiguous loss of what his life with her was would consume him.

His kids didn't ask questions, though the two oldest ones seemed angrier at him than usual. They still came around, but Lincoln especially had taken to being on his phone during visits. Once Lincoln stopped coming all together, that was when he finally decided to hear Christy out. She had begged and pleaded with him when he had arranged to meet with her, and she cried knowing that it could be the end. At first, he was unmoving, but months spent in Rhett's basement had made his heart grow lonelier, and now he was taking up residence on the couch in his living room. He had told Christy he would try but had made no promises to her about working it out definitely.

Link felt his eyes grow moist, "I don't know what you want me to say. I, I know I've gotta talk to the kids, man, but..." his eyes dried up, "...I mean what if we work it out? Then we got the kids scared for why?"

"You really think Y'all are gonna work this out?" Rhett looked skeptical, "I know you brother, I know you..."

"I mean, I can try right?"

There was a bought of silence and a look that passed between the two friends before Rhett slowly nodded and sifted through some papers that sat on his desk.

"You can try," he repeated for Link, effectively ending the conversation before he wound up on his knees cradling the bespectacled man again. "But for now, I need you to focus okay? We need to go shoot."

Link gave a small nod before sifting through the papers on his own desk, going over the notes for today's sketch again. He really tried to focus, he did, but the conversation was still fresh in his mind. There was still so much he wasn't sure about. He didn't have the gull to ask Christy the details of her cheating and he wasn't sure he wanted to know them. He had thought it all through, had hoped it was a one-time thing and not an affair, but the truth was that Link couldn't handle the truth and still stick around to look at her face every day.

A big hand on his shoulder brought Link back to the present, and he glanced up into Rhett's face. "You okay man?"

Link pulled up the corner of his mouth gratefully, but he knew it didn't reach his eyes. "No, but I guess I gotta be right?" He pushed up and stretched, getting ready to follow Rhett out of their office and into the hall.

Noah watched them come down the stairs into the basement. She has sitting opposite Stevie, and she had the day's list of "to-do's" in her lap. She was a writer for the show, and they were shooting one of her ideas so she had a front row seat. She also helped Jen run the social media accounts, sharing that task, and therefore making her a part of More on occasion.

From her seat, she had the perfect view, and when Rhett and Link came into the light, she felt her heart beat with one big THUMP before settling back down in her chest. He had been thinking about it again, she could tell. When Rhett had come into work alone a few months back, and had told them all that Link was taking a couple days off, she had known something was up right away. It wasn't like either of the men to not give a reason as to why they couldn't work. Rhett had told them all that something personal was keeping Link down for awhile, but he hadn't gone into details not wanting to upset the crew.

They had let it slide the first few days, but when a fourth day came and there was no brunette half of the duo to be seen, the crew started making assumptions of their own. The big man obliged when they had asked what was going on, knowing that everyone cared about his best friend too. They had been furious, and Link knew they were aware when he finally returned the following week. He addressed them and made it clear he was going to be fine, nobody believed him, and nobody talked about it anymore...at least not in front of him.

Noah would have went to Link herself, asking if he was okay and offering him comfort, but something felt weird about that. She had felt like that would have been a big ol' boundary crossed, regardless of their suedo friendship at work. Noah had been pleasantly surprised when Link had sought her out to confide in just a week ago, though she secretly thought he might have been looking for Jen and had stumbled upon her instead.

It had been the first real time in the year she had been working for them that she had a real one on one talk with the bespectacled half of her bosses. Sure, they had talked here and there and had even eaten lunch with one another a handful of times, but Link had never opened up to her in such a personal way before; tears brimming his blue eyes and making them shine brighter than any blue she had seen before. She hated seeing the permanent pink lining Link's eyes but what could she do?

So for now she regressed to staring at him as he plopped down at the desk behind the camera, brainstorming ways to make him feel better. Noah knew how it felt. Maybe not to the extent that Link knew, but she knew the pain of a cheating spouse. Her last two boyfriends had cheated on her. The most recent one, Dominic, had done it continuously for 2 years as she continued to forgive him for God only knows why. Promises of better tomorrows, she supposed, but better tomorrows had never come.

Link braved the camera and put on a smile for all of the Beasts. The filming of the show went off without a hitch, and Noah was glad that the episode was a game and had distracted Link. For a brief moment the pain had even left his eyes when Rhett had to take a mousetrap to the palm, and then he had to follow suit only to end up getting it a lot worse on the thumb. Now they were sitting behind the same desk, sans mousetraps thanks to Chase and a quick clean-up break, as the wheel spun and the duo cracked pun after pun. Link's eyes slowly filled with that pain again, but Noah knew no one watching would notice.

The wheel came to a stop and Rhett visibly blanched at the suggestion listed on the blue triangle. He hesitated for a moment before reading it out-loud.

"Rhett and Link become their wives."

Link's face hardened, and Noah saw the twitch in his jaw. She sat forward in her chair, nearly reaching out to him before Stevie spoke up, drawing attention to herself.

"We don't have to use that take."

"Yeah, we can always spin it again," Rhett chimed in.

"Eddie, I thought you edited the wheel..." someone behind Noah started to say.

"...It can be edited to look like one shot," Stevie interrupted.

Finally, Link seemed to register what was being said as he looked between the crew members and Rhett.

"No, I can do it." He stated simply, but Noah saw the micro twitch that matched the twitch in his eye. She stood up, drawing Stevie's attention for a second before Rhett talking made her look back.

"You sure?" he asked, concerned for his best friend. Link only nodded before leaning back in his chair. Noah shuffled a step forward, ready for the pin to drop. She had seen Link ready to explode before, though it was rare to witness in the office.

"I'm sure," he glanced at the crew again, his eyes raking over Noah just a fraction longer than everyone else as she stood just behind and to the right of the camera. "Keep rolling, I can be Christie. I just need to pretend like I'm fucking someone behind my husband's back..."

The collection of responses all garbled together as Noah let out a breath she hadn't even known she had been holding.

"Cut!" She yelled, even though it wasn't her job. Stevie seemed to agree because she motioned for Eddie, Morgan, Ben, and Casey to listen.

Link pushed himself away from the desk, chair clattering to the floor as he stalked across the room and out the door. The crew had gone silent, but the elephant in the room was suffocating them all. The crew knew, but hearing Link so upset and seeing the way he was still in pain made them all feel for their boss. They all cared about him.

"Go do something else," Rhett spoke to the crew standing around the room, muffled by his head resting in his hands.

Nobody questioned Rhett. Nobody pummeled him with questions, and nobody argued with him, especially when it came to Link.

"Do you need anything?" Chase asked, garnering a quick shake of the head, before he followed his crew mates out the door. Noah hadn't moved, and neither had Stevie.

The two women shared a look before Noah sighed heavily, hanging her head. She made to start walking toward the door.

"We should have just had you re-spin the wheel," Stevie tried, not garnering a response from Rhett. He sat stoic, hands clasped together with his elbows on the desk, head resting on his knuckles. The only thing moving were his eyes, zipping back in forth like he was deep in thought.

"You can fix that, right?" Stevie asked, directing her attention to Noah, effectively stopping her from leaving the filming set.

"Fix what?" Fix the take? Fix Link? Fix everything?

"The take," Stevie stood, walking behind Rhett and picking up the toppled chair, setting it up-right before taking a seat.

"I mean, of course, I can get Morgan to fix it. This will put us behind almost a half day of shooting but when Link is ready we can..."

"Ridiculous," Rhett finally leaned back in his chair, cutting Noah off. "He doesn't deserve all this crap." Rhett shared a glance with the two women, and although he didn't say specifically, they both knew exactly what he was talking about and nodded in agreement. Noah felt out of place, but she stayed rooted to her spot under the heavy stare of the bearded man.

"I mean," Rhett continued, "more than a decade of being married...she hasn't had to work in over six years, he's done it all; put a good roof over her head, kept her in nice clothes and eatin' good."

Noah expected this was one of those moments when Rhett just needed to vent. She felt like she was intruding on an intimate moment, but not unwelcomed. She'd met Rhett and Link a year ago when she'd graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and had moved to LA to pursue a career in production. They'd been so impressed with her internship after only two months that they had offered her a permanent gig, so she had grown fond of both of her bosses. This, though, felt like a shift in her relationship with both Rhett and Stevie as they let her witness this moment.

"He's always puttin' everyone else in front of himself, especially Christy and what's she go an' do?" Rhett sat back with a huff, grabbing his mug too firmly and taking a large drink from it.

Stevie rested a hand on Rhett's flannelled back, rubbing small soothing circles against the fabric and sinews of his muscled shoulders.

"Can you go check on him please?" Rhett's attention was focused back on Noah as she twirled a piece of her strawberry hair.

"I, I mean," Rhett wanted her to go find Link? She wasn't even sure where he would've gone or if he would want to be found. Rhett's gaze was intense, and even though Noah thought maybe he should be the one to go find Link, she didn't think she could tell him no. "Yeah, yes. I'll find him."

*15 minutes later*

"I didn't know you smoked," Noah approached the tall man. She had found him hiding out in the back parking lot, safely out of view.

He didn't startle, but her presence made his shoulders tense as he puffed a cloud of grey smoke into the already smoggy California air.

"I don't," he replied, studying the glowing tip of the cancer stick rolling around two of his fingers.

"Me neither," Noah responded, plucking the cigarette from Link's hand and placing it between her berry stained lips. She took a drag, hating how it tasted and coughing immediately before throwing the stick on the ground and digging it out with the toe of her all-stars.

Link only pursed his lips and dug his hands into his pockets.

"Rhett send you?"

Noah moved into the shade coming from the studio to avoid some of the stifling heat radiating from the concrete and sun. "He just wants to make sure you're alright."

"He knows I am." Link huffed, "I just, I don't know. It gets overwhelming sometimes you know?"

He was facing her now, left shoulder leaning against the pale brick wall. Noah hadn't known how Link would take her finding him, but he seemed comfortable enough. This was the second time in just as many weeks that they had found themselves alone when Link's emotional state was questionable.

"That why you're smoking?" she asked, shifting to her other foot. He smirked.

"I just thought I would try it. A lot of people smoke when they're stressed..."

"...nasty habit..."

"...I know, I know..."

"You'll be stinky all the time."

Link actually smiled at her use of the word "stinky". It seemed so juvenile and for a second the humor of her words shivered over him.

"Stinky?" he couldn't help the laugh that accompanied his question.

Noah shrugged, but Link could tell she hadn't been offended by the way the corners of her mouth quirked up. He appreciated her checking up on him, and even more so that she seemed to lighten the mood a bit. He told her so and watched as she shrugged a slim shoulder.

"I'm not making smoking a habit," he told her after a moment.

"You can do whatever you wa..."

"No, no I can't. I mean", it was Link's turn to shrug, "I guess I can, but there are better ways to deal with the the...freaking stress of everything. Something that won't make me so 'stinky'."

Noah could see the lines form between his brows again.

"I'm, I'm sorry...Link. I just, I'm sorry."

His blue eyes locked onto her wide green ones. Link seemed to study her for a minute, and she let him. She really was sorry, and by the way, his eyes bore into hers she knew that he could tell it wasn't because she called him stinky. Getting to know bits and pieces of Link, she could tell he wasn't a bad man. Sure, he was a little neurotic at times but he treated everyone fairly and did his best to take care of those dear to him. He was loyal, kind, and such a hard worker. Noah just couldn't understand why someone would want to hurt him the way his wife had. Then again, she was all of those things too, and she had been hurt the same way before.

Finally, Link pushed off the wall just as Noah thought the moment might have been growing too intense for her.

"Come on," he said simply, "let's get back to work."

Noah might have thought she angered him if the smirk on his face wasn't there and the lines on his forehead smoothed out. She followed him step for step back toward the big silver door that led inside, waiting as he dialed in the code and pulled it open, stepping back so she could enter first.

"Thank you," he almost whispered at the same time she started thanking him for getting the door.

She smiled at him again, "Anytime, Link."

 **Don't forget to leave some love, thanks!**


	2. Tell Me

**Hi! This chapter is a little shorter, but I couldn't break up the next part and having it all together would have made the chapter too long! Hope you still enjoy this bit of Link's side of things. As always, leave me a comment or kudos if you'd like to see this story continue. THANK YOU! -HEX**

 ***Song for this chapter: Broken Home- 5 Seconds of Summer***

The rest of Link's day couldn't have gone any worse. Everyone looked at him with pity and he couldn't for the life of him stop fumbling over his words after they started shooting again. At one point Stevie had even asked if he needed a break; his icy blue glare had given her all the answer she needed and they had started filming again.

Every now and then he would glance over at the little redhead standing toward the middle of the room. After her episode had shot, and they had moved on to one of Ellie's, she had fallen back and took to watching the feed in the monitors. Her slender fingers had tucked her shoulder-length hair behind her ears, and she was wearing large headphones as she watched the raw footage from her episode.

Link had been distracted a couple times by how intense she had looked; her green eyes narrowed in concentration and her bottom lip worrying between her pearly white teeth. She had been doing that outside too, biting her lip. He had known her for a while, but just in the past few weeks, he had taken note that she did the lip biting out of habit when she was thinking about something or, he guessed when she was concentrating. She had been gone by the time he had come out of his shared office space, he remembered her telling him once she likes to get to work a little early so she could leave earlier, and he had been a little surprised by how it had disappointed him that he didn't get the chance to say bye.

Now, at the end of his long day of screw-ups, the last place Link had wanted to end up was where he currently was; sitting in his car in the driveway of his house. He knew how ridiculous it sounded. This was his house, his home. His kids were inside, and Jade. All of his things and all of his most cherished memories...and the memories he wished he could forget.

He saw Christy peak through the gauzy curtains floating over the large window next to the front door. She backed away quickly when she realized he had caught her watching him, and a blooming pain formed in his chest. He tried, he really did, to see past her infidelity but he couldn't. Every time he looked into her eyes he saw another man staring back at him, and when he needed to go in his bedroom for a change of clothes he often found himself staring at the big bed in the middle of the room with pure hatred.

They hadn't even really talked about what had happened beyond her apologies and his anxiety attacks. The pain in his chest radiated to his shoulders and head and he quickly started practicing the deep breathing he had learned from a YouTube channel about meditation. Link didn't know if he wanted to talk to Christy about her cheating; didn't know if he could stick it out if he knew the whole truth. What he did know, though, is that he couldn't stick it out not knowing either and in four months he had barely started to heal.

With all the resolve he could manage Link finally got out of his car and walked inside. He was instantly met with three happy kids and an excited wiener dog. For a brief moment, all of Link's anger disappeared as Lily started telling her dad about her new friend at school, something he was particularly interested in since this was her first year in public school. Lincoln had said a brief hi, complete with a side hug, as he scurried up the stairs to his room. At 11 all he seemed to want to do was play his video games online with Rhett's son, Locke. Link didn't mind as long as at dinner he told him about his day. Finally, Lando clung to his father.

His youngest was only 6, and unlike his other two, Lando seemed to need Link's attention far more often. His emotional little boy, Link called the blonde haired babe. Lando would cry if he thought Link was hurt in any way, and get worried if his daddy wasn't home around the usual time. Lando knew Link's daily routine throughout the week and his dependence on him had been shaken recently when Link had moved out for a month. Poor Lando had thought his dad had gone away forever. Link didn't say it out loud, but Lando was the child that was most like him when he was young.

Finally, after a few moments spent with his children, a quiet cough caught his attention and he looked up to see Christy standing near the dining room.

She smiled softly, "I made your favorite."

Link told Lily to go get her brother as he peeled his youngest away from him and sent him to wash his hands.

"Hope it wasn't too much trouble for you," Link mumbled as he made his way toward her. He was about to brush past her through the archway when her nimble fingers met his bicep and stopped him. Link looked down into the face of his wife; the woman he had loved for over a decade and felt that bloom of pain once more.

Her eyes were filled with unshed tears, and from this short distance Link could smell the lavender shampoo she loved so much.

"I don't know what to say," he answered her questioning look. She looked like she wanted to respond, but at that moment Lincoln came barreling down the stairs, his sister at his heels.

"Mom, Lincoln threw his shoe at me when I told him it was supper time!"

And that was that. Link pushed past Christy and she turned to reprimand her oldest son. Link made sure Lincoln apologized. The next second Lando came into the dining room and the family sat together to eat the country fried steak. The banter was friendly, the food was good, and for just a moment everything seemed normal again.

After dinner it was time for homework, so both parents ushered their children to their respective rooms to complete the night's assignments. Lando and Jade curled up on the couch for a movie and Link headed off to his office for a moment to breathe. He didn't expect Christy to follow him a few minutes later.

"Hey, she said after he answered her soft knock. "I made peach cobbler too. Thought you might want some." She held out the plate, complete with a big scoop of ice cream on top.

He accepted her offer, mumbling thanks. She didn't turn to retreat, instead opting to stare at her husband with expectant eyes.

"Something else you need?" He asked as he made his way back to his desk, leaving the door open as she followed him inside. The soft click let him know she had closed it behind her back.

She struggled for a moment as Link took a bite of the cobbler, hardly tasting it. He just knew why she was here, and he wasn't sure he was ready for it.

"I, I need," the tears came back as Christy took a steady breath and tried again. "I need...your forgiveness."

The clatter of his fork startled him since he wasn't even aware he had dropped it.

"Christy, I..."

"No, let me talk." She took another steadying breath, effectively cutting Link off. "It's been over four months, Link. I've been trying, I really have. I am so sorry for what I did and I would take it back if I could, but I can't. I made a mistake and I'm trying to right my wrongs, but it's hard when I feel like I'm the only one trying here."

"The only one trying?" Link's head was swimming. "Christy, I moved back home. I, I came back and I told you we could try to make this work between us..."

"...for the kids! I get it, the kids are the most important thing in this world to me too but..."

"There is no but!" Link had all but shoved himself out of his desk chair and stood to face Christy, the desk between them. "That's why I agreed to try, which I think I've been doing a pretty damn good job..."

"You barely look at me, Link."

"Because every time I do all I see is you fu..."

"I said I'm sorry!" Her tears were falling now. Link wanted to feel pity, but all he felt was anger.

"I heard you, Christy. I heard you say _sorry._ "

"Do you still love me?" She asked him point blank.

Link opened his mouth to answer but no words came out. He didn't know what his answer should be. Of course, he still loved her, but that had all started to change after what had happened. Link didn't think he could ever love her the same again. How could he? He imagined kissing her, holding her again...being intimate with her, and all he could feel were the constraints of a man that he didn't even know the name of. He had left so fast the day he had caught her that he hadn't even seen the man's face.

"Who was he," he choked out. "Tell me who he is."

Christy began to tremble at the obvious moment that Link chose to ignore her question about love. He thought she must not have wanted to have this conversation either, but there they were, and he couldn't ignore it anymore.

"Just someone I met at..."

"No, Christy. I want you to tell me his name."

"It's been over four months," she tried, her eyes begging him.

"We've been married over ten years, and you forgot about that when you, when you, ch-cheated on me," Link spat, "I think I deserve to know who the man is that took that all away."

They stood in silence until Christy obliged.

"Do you remember when we went to the Memorial Day picnic at John and Lenny's?"

Link thought back to the party that the Neal's had been invited to in May and nodded.

"Well, Lenny introduced us to his brother David and his wife Myrna, remember?"

Again Link nodded, remembering the blonde haired man with the dark brown eyes that had gripped his hand and told him he was a "big fan" of Good Mythical Morning. Christy stared at Link knowingly until it clicked.

"David? You, he's married!"

Christy looked away, embarrassment stealing away her pretty features. Of course, she didn't care that David had been married, she didn't care that she'd been married either.

"How?" He finally asked her.

"I don't, Link, there's just...I need to, to tell you something else."

His hands curled into fists at his side. He didn't want this to happen. He didn't want her to say whatever she was going to say, and he didn't want to be in this room anymore.

"After you, well, you know," she implied the moment that he had caught her with David. "Well, when you left, when you went to Rhett's for that month...I'm sorry honey." She was crying again.

Link felt his head spin. What was she implying? Did she, no...

"Are you telling me that you kept seeing him, Christy?"

She nodded her head, quickly swiping at her eyes.

"How long? How many times did you see him?"

He saw her purse her mouth, a sign that she was trying to think, and it drove him even deeper. The cold prickles started climbing his spinal cord at the realization that she had seen him so often, she needed to think before she gave him an accurate answer. The plate holding his cobbler shattered against the far wall before he even realized he had thrown it.

Christy shrunk back, "Link, please! I know it was horrible of me..."

"You can't even remember how many times you fucked him!?"

"I, I, I can't think, I'm sorry I swear it!"

"I'm leaving," Link stated as he marched from the room, ignoring her protests.

"No, please don't! Where will you go? Link I want to fix this!"

She was at his heels, oblivious to the fact that all three of their children were sitting on the stairs leading upstairs. Lily held onto Lando, who was crying loudly. Lincoln sat further up, a scowl twisted across the face that looked so much like Link's.

He spun on her and snarled in an angry whisper, "not now."

Christy seemed to register that she had three sets of little eyes on her and pinned her mouth shut. Link turned toward his kids and plastered on a fake smile.

"Hey guys, we were just..."

"Fighting again, we know," Lily answered and Lando whimpered in her lap.

"Grown up's have conversations sometimes that don't always make them happy, but it's okay." Link tried to assure his kids, reaching for his youngest who nearly leaped into his arms.

"Are you gonna come back, Daddy?" Lando peered into his Dad's face. Link's heart shattered.

"Yeah, buddy, I'm gonna come back. But, but I need to go do something okay? I'll see you tomorrow after work. I promise."

That seemed to be satisfactory as Lando squeezed his father's neck even tighter before being put down and running to his mother. She placed her hands on his shoulder, but her watery eyes never left Link. He stared back, cursing her inside his head, before addressing his other two children and walking out the front door without so much as another word.


	3. Tacos

***Song for this chapter: Promise- Eve 6***

Noah had shown up to work at her usual 9:00, a half hour before her crewmates and a full hour before her bosses. She liked that they were given some liberty when it came to their work schedules and much preferred showing up and leaving early. She had some interesting dreams the night prior involving a pair of specific blue eyes, and she had made sure that her morning run was dedicated to forgetting about the awkward encounter.

Imagine her surprise when his car was parked in the back lot when she pulled in. She was always the first to arrive at Mythical Entertainment, but today it seemed like he had beaten her to the punch.

Noah weaved her way through the halls of the office building, turning on light switches as she went, before brewing a fresh pot of coffee in the little crew lounge off the main room. She hadn't seen Link yet, but she assumed he was in his office. It was strange that he hadn't turned on any of the lights when he had entered, but Noah decided not to read too much into it. He must have had a busy day for him to come in so early. Quickly pulling two mugs from the cupboard, Noah dressed them both with a little cream and added sugar only to hers, a sweet-n-low going into the other cup. She briefly wondered how she knew the way he took his coffee as she made her way past her desk, depositing her mug on its surface, and down the hall leading to the shared office.

He didn't answer when she knocked, and she briefly wondered if she had imagined his car in the parking lot.

"Link?" She called out, knocking lightly again before waiting.

She heard muffled noises coming from the other side of the door, but it was still another 30 seconds before he answered. Noah sucked in a breath of surprise at the disgruntled man before her. Link's hair was sticking up every which way in little tuffs, with the left side squashed almost flat. His white tee was wrinkled, again the left side was rolled and crinkled just a little more, and Noah noticed he had no shoes on. The bleary eyes that stared back at her were heavy with sleep. That's why he hadn't turned on any lights...

"Oh," she gasped, "I'm sorry. I didn't, well...I made coffee and..."

She stopped short when Link raised his arms over his head and stretched his tall frame. His shirt rose with the motion and her eyes briefly found the stretch of tan skin above the band of his boxer briefs. It took her another second to realize his pants were unbuttoned like he had pulled them on in a hurry.

"That was nice of you to bring me some," he smiled sleepily, grabbing the mug from her and retreating back into the office. He left the door open, his way of inviting her inside, and was content when he heard her soft steps a few paces behind him.

"What time is it?" He glanced at the clock on the far wall of the room just as Noah answered him as well. Link groaned before plopping onto the couch, bringing the steaming mug to his lips. He stared down into the light brown mix, realizing that she had gotten his coffee perfect and appreciated her attention to detail.

Link knew he should be embarrassed that Noah had caught him sleeping in the office. Even more so that she was seeing him in his current state, which reminded him his pants were unbuttoned, but as she sat in Rhett's big yellow chair, toeing off her Toms and tucking her feet underneath herself, he felt nothing short of comfortable. She had that sort of presence about her, it was one of the reasons they had hired her in the first place.

"This coffee is really good," he told her, taking another sip.

"Thanks. I make it every morning before the rest of the crew get here." She smiled at him and he noticed that she had a little freckle near the left corner of her mouth.

"Ah, when do they get here?" He usually came at 10, and most everyone was already here by then. He needed to make sure he was more put together before they showed up.

"Jen and Chase usually show up around," she glanced at the clock, "well in about 20 minutes or so. Everyone else sort of files in after."

Link sighed deeply, letting his head fall back onto the couch. "I slept like shit last night."

"Rough night?" She tested the water. He tutted before answering.

"You have no idea."

Noah looked around the office, noticing she didn't see any blankets or pillows.

"Where did you sleep last night? That couch couldn't have been comfortable with no pillows."

Link took another swig of coffee and pointed toward the narrow stairs at the back of the office.

"So that's what's in your secret loft..." she trailed off, wondering if there was a bed up there or just a spot for him to inflate an air mattress.

"It's a nap spot, among other things." Link said, and for a second there was a boyish charm about the older man when he mentioned napping.

She actually laughed at him and he sat back up, quirking an eyebrow over the dark expanse of the frames of his glasses.

"What?"

She shook her head, tucking a loose strand of her amber hair behind her ear. She had little diamond studs in both of her lobes that sparkled in the little rays of sun that danced their way between the heavy blinds behind Link's head.

"Nothing, I just, that was...cute, for lack of better words." She was smiling an open lip smile at him now and once again Link picked up on a tiny detail he had never noticed about her before; a tiny gap between her two front teeth peaked out from between her pink lips. He felt his cheeks burn a little.

"I'm old enough to be your dad. I hardly think..."

"Oh, you are not!" She laughed again, chucking a pillow at him.

He held his shoulder where the pillow collided, "and now you're abusing me!"

She rolled her green eyes toward the ceiling and Link took the opportunity to chuck the pillow back at her, nearly spilling his own coffee in the process. She huffed as he leaned forward to place the mug on a coaster.

"You're not, by the way," she eyed him, fluffing her wavy lob before tucking it behind her ear again. His eyebrow arched again as he followed suit with his hair, attempting to smooth it as much as he could, she continued. "Old enough to be my dad I mean. That was pretty dramatic."

"Well your dad could have had you young, what do I know?"

"Unless he had me when he was 11, I think your timing is off."

So she was 25, Link thought. She's so young, almost too young, and still has so much life ahead. Then he focused on the number 11, the same age as Lincoln, and felt a big THUMP against his chest. His kids had heard him and Christy fighting the night before. He had seen the look on their faces when he left.

Noah noticed the second that Link's mood changed. He had leaned back again, crossing his arms over his chest. In a matter of seconds, he had closed in on himself.

"Are you okay, Link?" She asked, feeling brave. This was the man she'd known for a year and had been growing more fond of as of late. Her caring nature demanded she reach out to him.

It took him a moment to respond, but when he did she hadn't been expecting him to lay himself bare.

"Found out Christy kept seeing that other guy after I caught her." His voice hitched about halfway through.

Noah felt genuine sadness. "I'm so sorry Link. That," she shook her head, "That's awful."

He sat forward again swiping his mug up and taking another sip of coffee before replying.

"Worst part is, my kids heard us fightin'. They, Lando, he's so sensitive you know?" She nodded her head, even though she didn't really know. She had only met Lando briefly, once, when he had come to eat lunch with Link. He continued anyway, "He was cryin' when I left. Made me promise to come back home. I don't want, can't...I don't think I can go back is what I mean. I'm just so damn mad at her."

"They love you, Link. They're going to love you no matter what you do. It's okay to be mad."

He stared at her for a long second, and she noticed that his stubble was growing in more than usual. The flecks of silver peppered along his jaw were a stark contrast to the almost jet black mop on top of his head. She didn't hate it.

"Why do I gotta feel like the bad guy, Noah? Why, even after everything, am I the shitty person because I can't forgive my wife for screwin' someone else?"

It was her turn to stare at him. He didn't see the usual pity in her eyes. Instead there was fire burning behind the green waves like embers floating over the open sea. Link felt himself lean forward toward her, drawn to the intense energy she was putting off. He didn't know what he was doing, but he felt like he needed to be closer to her. He saw her shift in her seat and move toward him a fraction of an inch, and then it was gone as quick as it came. Voices drifted down the hall and through the open door, and the powerful moment was broken.

She glanced out the door before moving to pull her shoes back on, her eyes flicking back to meet his as they searched his face for a ghost of the moment they had shared just seconds before. Link stood and moved to deposit his coffee mug on his desk instead of the coffee table.

"I guess I should get dressed," he tried. "Good thing there's a whole wardrobe at my disposal."

She chuckled, "make sure you use a lot of deodorant and brush your teeth real good."

"Why? So I don't get, what'd you call it? 'stinky'"

"Hey! That's only when you smoke," she defended her choice of words from the day before. "When you don't shower it's a whole different set of stank."

"Stank!" He laughed, "I'm not gonna 'stank'. I showered yesterday." She shook her head and rolled her eyes again, a habit that he didn't hate that she did. He found that surprising since any time Rhett or anyone else rolled their eyes he was quick to correct them. "Besides, I threw my pack away."

"Good. You don't need to add cancer to your list of ailments," she countered.

"What ailments?" He questioned, moving toward the door as she did. He grabbed hold of the wooden frame as she stood just inside the doorway.

"Oh, I don't know...OCD maybe? Dry elbows? Albino mole?"

He grinned, "okay, I'll give you that."

She smirked, "don't need you to be unshowered _and_ smell like an ashtray at the same time you know."

He playfully shoved her out the door, "okay, that's it, get to work."

She backed out of the doorway with his little shove, feeling her heart laugh along with her. It was good to leave him laughing, she thought. Link only pointed down the hallway and made a face that mirrored the words he just told her.

"Okay, okay, I'm going. If you need anything you know right where to find me." She moved to walk away but was stopped when he reached for her arm.

"Thank you. I mean it. You keep, I feel, just thank you." His voice was lower than it had been, the knowledge that there were others down the hall keeping him at a lower volume.

Noah checked to make sure no one was near the end of the hall before she slowly took a step toward him, his tall frame towering over all of her smaller 5' 3". Her arms went around his waist and up to his shoulder blades, pulling him against her.

"You're not the bad guy, Link. You have to forgive yourself, too."

He kept one hand on the doorframe and let his other come down across her shoulders, breathing her in. She smelled nothing like lavender, and instead had a sweeter scent similar to cotton candy and mint. It wasn't at all unpleasant. Then she had spoken those words, and he thought he could melt into her. His other hand came off the door frame and pulled her into his chest.

She was so much shorter than Christy, closer to Jessie's height. She smelled new, felt new, and made Link feel new with the words she seemed to know how to speak at moments she knew she should speak them. He was grateful for the friendship he was gaining, and when she started lowering her hands away from him he just wanted to hold onto her a little more. She was so warm and he needed that comfort. Other than Rhett and Jessie, he couldn't remember the last adult he had even come in contact with.

Noah smiled up at the brunette in front of her. He had just looked so broken, shadows falling under his glistening blue eyes, and she just needed to hug him for a second; needed him to know that he had a friend in her.

"I'll bring lunch to your office later if you want?" She asked, thinking maybe the least amount of time he spent around people while he was grumpy, the better. "I mean I don't want to assume anything but if you didn't..." she started to fumble before he interrupted.

"That would be great." He smiled again, his hand still on her shoulder.

"Oh, okay. I, well I'll get to work and I'll see you at lunchtime," she slid out from under his hand, back toward the end of the hallway. "You like tacos? My treat."

"You don't have to..."

"I insist! If it makes you happy, I'm on it!" And then she was gone, around the corner and he assumed headed to her little workstation near the back end of the building with the other writers.

Link took a deep breath, steadying himself as he smiled and shut the door softly.

"You could've come round the house bo, you know that." Rhett leaned back in his seat, abandoning the article he had pulled up and giving Link his full attention. He'd been telling Link that all morning since he'd showed up and found out what had happened.

It was closer to lunchtime now, and Link and Rhett had been talking all morning. The big man had once again expressed his extreme dislike of Christy and what she had done, and for once, Link hadn't defended her. He felt stupid, betrayed, and if he thought he was having a difficult time with it before he sure as hell was struggling to find a way to forgive her now!

"It was late, man, my head was spinning. I told you I needed to be alone." Link rubbed his scruffy face, wishing he could shave it but not really caring that it wasn't.

"I know, but, "Rhett looked at him, concern wrinkling his smooth features. "You sure you're alright?"

"No, I'm not alright, Rhett. I just found out my wife had a full-blown affair!" Link took a second to compose himself before continuing. "I, I didn't have another one of those breathing things happen though if that's what you mean."

Rhett studied Link for a long time, "you're gonna have to make a decision brother."

"I know, damnit!" Link smacked the desk, a pencil rolled away in protest.

He knew he'd have to decide what he was going to do with Christy, with his kids...his kids. That was the toughest part about all of this. He didn't know what Christy would do if they got a divorce. Would she take the kids back to North Carolina? He couldn't imagine her dragging them away from their lives here, having grown up in Los Angeles, but he never knew what her decision would be. He couldn't stand not seeing his kids every day. Everything was just a mess and Goddamnit Christy; why'd she have to go ruin a good thing?

Well, mostly a good thing. Link had been thinking for a while before her infidelity that maybe there was some distance forming between him and her. There were some nights, not every night, but some that they'd even fall asleep without so much as an "I love you" or a peck on the cheek. He couldn't remember the last time they'd had sex. Maybe three weeks before he caught her with David? Maybe 4? They used to surprise one another a couple times a week at least, then it had become once a week, and before he knew it he was reduced to jerking himself off in the shower more often than he liked to admit.

"I'm sorry, I just, man," Link took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "I slept like shit, and I feel like I'm stuck but I don't even know where, you know?"

"I'm real sorry, brother. I know this isn't easy and..."

A soft knock on the door interrupted Rhett, who immediately told Link they'd talk later and got up to answer the door.

Link rolled his shoulders, his neck, and cracked his fingers as Rhett pulled the door open. He was so dang tense.

"You order Poquito Mas?" Rhett called over to him, walking back toward his own desk.

"Poquito..." Link looked up and saw Noah standing just inside the door frame, a bag in her hands and a nervous smile on her face. "Oh! Tacos! It's lunchtime!"

"You forgot, huh?" She asked, wrinkling her nose but sticking with the smile. Link noticed her cheeks flush a little.

He stood up, crossing over to her to take the bag from her hand as she balanced two cans of lime LaCroix in her other one.

"I'm sorry, I've just been," he motioned to his desk, "workin', and talkin' and..."

"Moping," Rhett interjected, glancing curiously at the pair as Link shut the door, leaving Noah closed off inside of the room.

Link shot him a glare, "sure...but," he turned his attention back to the little redhead nibbling her bottom lip, "I still definitely want tacos! Come in."

Rhett closed his laptop, arching a brow and staring at Link. "What is happening right now?"

Noah deposited the cans on the coffee table as Link dropped the bag into her lap after she slid her shoes off and sat butterfly style on the couch.

"We were just talking this morning, is all," Link defended, "Noah comes in early..."

"Yeah, and I offered to buy tacos for lunch."

She was aware that Rhett was glancing between her and Link with a furrow in his brow. She knew how it might look strange, but she didn't think Link cared so she wouldn't either. She enjoyed spending time with him, even more so when she was able to cheer him up a bit.

"Thank you again," Link said, taking the offered wrapper she held out to him.

"It was no trouble at all."

Link's mouth went dry, remembering that he had mumbled something similar to Christy the night before. He cracked open his drink and took a large swig.

"You're buying next time though," she cheekily replied before taking a bite of the chicken taco she had just added hot sauce too.

Rhett ruffled after her implication of the next time. "I should probably go get something for myself," the bearded man muttered at the same time Link had gladly agreed to pay for their lunch on a different occasion.

"Where you goin'?" Link asked his best friend around a mouthful of carnitas with no tomatoes; he made a mental note about that the first bite he had taken. Once again Noah's attention to detail was not lost on him.

He was mildly aware that Rhett had something stewing around in his brain, but he wasn't going to ask him about it in front of the green-eyed girl on his left.

"Tacos sound good, maybe I'll head down to Baha Fresh." Rhett tucked his wallet into his back pocket.

"I'm sorry," Noah said after washing down a bite with some of her drink. "I wasn't thinking, or I would've brought you a couple too."

"Don't worry about it," he addressed her quickly before addressing them both. "Don't forget we have to shoot after lunch, whose episode is it again?"

"I think it's one of Kevin's?" She said, taking another bite of her taco.

"It's the game about guessing what scent something is right?"

Noah nodded her head.

"Great, they're gonna make us sniff coyote piss again huh?"

Noah heard a gag coming from her right and stifled a laugh, "don't you start gaggin' already!" She poked Link in the ribs, he only smiled and went back to unwrapping his next taco.

"Right..." Rhett looked between the two again, but this time Noah didn't look away when his eyes met hers. She just smiled a little and happily chewed her food.

Link noticed the tension in Rhett's shoulders right away when he glanced back up at the taller man. It didn't sit right with him, but again, with Noah in the room, he didn't think it appropriate to bring it up. Rhett made for the door.

"I'll be back in a few. We've still got a lot of work to do..."

"I'm heading back out to help production when I'm done." Noah interrupted, getting the feeling that Rhett was uncomfortable with her being in his office or getting closer to Link. She'd be willing to bet it was the latter since there had never been an issue with any crew member invading their space before.

"Right," Rhett repeated himself, "well just make sure..."

"I'm sure production is fine, Rhett." Link cut in, "Noah said she was heading back out in a few minutes."

The blonde nodded his head slowly, "well okay". Then he was gone, leaving the office door open behind him as he went.

Link quickly got up and pushed it shut a little more forcefully than he had intended.

The rest of lunch went by a lot quicker than either of them could imagine. There was a lot of laughter and teasing, and Link's smile reached his eyes when Noah sprayed some of her water from her nose after a particularly ridiculous comeback he had said. Lin hadn't felt so normal in a long time.

Noah's nose was still burning when she felt her phone vibrate. Glancing down, she saw the message from Mike and realized that she had stayed a little later than she had intended and now she really was needed in the studio.

"Shit," she muttered, blowing her nose one more time. "I have to get back to work. They need me"

Link glanced up at the wall clock and nodded, "I should probably get ready too. Rhett should've been back by now." He moved to start shoving all their discarded wrappers into the bag from which they came. Noah moved to throw away her tissue and grabbed the now empty cans from the table.

"It's L.A. I wouldn't be surprised if he's headed back now and just got stuck in traffic."

"True. That's one thing I hate here." Link deposited the trash in the bin. Noah followed suit.

"I really thought I wouldn't mind driving here, since Pittsburgh is like," Noah trailed off, remembering the traffic back home and shaking her head. "Los Angeles is like an entirely different kind of Hell though."

"Try growing up in Harnett County!" Link rebutted. "Comin' here it was like we'd been dropped on a different planet!"

"Oh, I bet! I've been to the Outer Banks, but even then right off the island it was just a bunch of lazy driving and no hurry to be anywhere."

Link sighed, standing in front of her as she stood in front of the door.

"Sounds about right..." he trailed off, wishing for a minute he could slow his life back down. Everything in L.A. moved so fast. Link would give just about anything to move at a pace more accustomed to his southern roots. He'd wanted more than anything back then to speed up, and he did; driving fast, running fast, moving fast with girlfriends, and now Link just wanted to go slower as his life unwound around him.

Noah felt warm in her belly. She had really liked having lunch with Link. He made her laugh, and even though she knew he was under a lot of pressure she could see him relax in her presence. He had a sad smile on his face when she glanced back up at him. His eyes were far away but they were on her. She hadn't noticed just how blue his eyes were before; her belly warmed even more.

It was another 10 seconds before either of them realized they had just been standing there staring at each other.

Noah moved first, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and turning to hide her smile, "I really should go help the crew."

"Let me," Link reached forward, his chest lightly gracing Noah's back as he gripped the doorknob and pulled it open. She had to back into him further to allow for the door to swing open fully.

Link was surrounded by cotton candy and mint as Noah leaned into him. He could feel something coil in his lower bell, and when she turned around and smiled up at him he had the sudden urge to take a cold shower. He had the sneaking suspicion that he understood why Rhett had been so tense when he was here.

"I'll see you later," and with that, she sashayed down the hall.

Link watched after her for too long, lingering in the open doorframe. He had only one thought as the spring in his belly twisted tighter...'shit'.

 **Ending on a lighter note, at least! Let me know what you think! Thanks, guys, as always I appreciate your support. -HEX**


	4. I Could Be

The weeks went by and Halloween was creeping up on the folks at Mythical Entertainment. Link had kept his promise to Lando and had returned home, even if he hadn't said a word to Christy. She hadn't tried to corner him until a week later when he was drinking a beer and watching a movie. They hadn't argued, but they had certainly not been able to come to an agreement on things.

Christy was growing increasingly more frustrated with Link's stubborn decision to not let up, which only pissed him off more. "It's not fair" she proclaimed, only to have him tell her off and refuse to budge. It was starting to look more and more like the couple wouldn't be able to work it out and Link was having a hard time accepting that. They'd said vows, damnit! They'd had kids together that would suffer because of Christy's stupid, stupid mistake.

Then there was work. It was getting really busy around the office as he and Rhett got ready to start writing their new book, season 11 was about halfway over, and they needed to start finalizing their script for Buddy System. It wasn't set to shoot for a while, but they needed to start finalizing scripts so they could fill roles and get the rights to filming locations. Not to mention that the Streamy's were on Saturday and they hadn't even filmed their video submission for the 'Most Influential Duo' intro yet.

As busy as it was and as stressful as it all seemed, Link couldn't remember a time that he had enjoyed his job more. He preferred days at the office to days spent at home and some of the crew had even started noting his happier demeanor. It was almost back to business as usual, except that on most days Link spent his lunch breaks laughing tucked away with a certain redhead instead of sticking it out in his office or joining the rest of the crew in the lounge.

He didn't know when they had started expecting one or the other to buy or bring lunch for both of them, but it was rare anymore that they were found apart during that time. So far no one had said anything to him, but he had noticed the lingering looks they received when they walked off together. Link had asked Noah once how work was going and she hadn't given any indication that it was going poorly or anyone had said anything to her so he had to expect that it was fine.

Rhett had become even tenser around the girl, though he kept it professional. Link had asked him once if there was a problem and Rhett had only looked at him for a long moment before asking him what he was doing. Link couldn't answer then.

To be honest, Link didn't know how to answer. He was hanging out with Noah, and he was feeling more normal every day. That's all he knew, and that's what he told Rhett on their drive to their director's office to drop off the finished Buddy System script for review.

"You don't even know what you're doing with Christy yet, is all," Rhett said to his friend, hands gripping the steering wheel as he crept along the L.A. streets.

Link wrinkled his forehead as he frowned, "it ain't gettin' any better."

"I know, bo, that's what I'm worried about. It ain't gettin' any better but you're still livin' there, still actin' like your married..."

"We ain't actin' like we're married," Link cut him off, turning to look at his friend. "I haven't touched her in months."

"Do you want to touch her?" Rhett retorted.

Link stopped to think. He thought he might want to at times when she looked sweeter than apple pie and had that look in her eyes that told him she was thinking about fucking him too. It'd been a while for him and it felt unfair that he was married and celibate. Without committing to forgiving her completely, he just didn't want to give her hope in the form of sex regardless of his urges.

"I mean, I think about it," he replied softly.

"What's stopping you then?"

'You know what', he had wanted to say. Instead, he told Rhett about a conversation he and Noah had a few days ago about how conflicted he was.

"Noah been helping you through all this?" Rhett's jaw clenched under his beard.

"Sure, you know we been hangin' out."

Rhett was silent for a few minutes, weaving his way through traffic until finally, "that all y'all been doin'?"

Link's head snapped toward the taller man, "what's that supposed to mean?" Maybe he sounded a little more angry than surprised.

"Just been spendin' a lot of time together is all."

"We're friends, Rhett, what are you implying?"

" I'm not implying anyth..."

"Cut the shit, man," Link was growing impatient. He wasn't expecting Rhett to snap right back.

"You cut the shit, Link! What are you doing?" Rhett was keeping his attention focused on the road, but Link could see the strain in his neck.

"I'm makin' a friend, what's it matter?"

"Brother, you ain't slept with your wife in months, I know you been lonely..."

"You better think about what you're gonna' say next."

Link waited for Rhett to respond. He could feel the tips of his fingers start to tingle all the way up to the tips of his ears. Rhett was starting to touch a real sensitive spot. Link was still married. It might be walking a thin line, but it was still bound by law...for now. Not that the thought hadn't crossed Link's mind when he let himself drift off a little. He always caught himself before his daydreams got too far and he almost always felt a little guilty afterward.

He'd noticed other women before. He'd had dozens of mythical beasts fawning over him for years, and he'd been approached by women at parties, but Noah was different. She wasn't just a random girl he knew nothing about. She worked for him. He saw her every day and he had been getting to know her pretty well. She was so caring, and a hard worker. Link thought maybe he liked her a little, which was terrifying since he had never had the option of exploring any feelings for anyone since meeting Christy.

Is that even what he wanted to do? Did he have feelings for Noah? No, he couldn't. There were so many reasons why he shouldn't let those thoughts dance around in his brain. She was his employee, he was almost 11 years her senior, and most of all he was still married.

"She's pretty," Rhett said slowly, effectively fueling Link's thought process in a way he hadn't intended it to go. "I just mean, people been noticin' you and her spendin' more time together is all."

"We're just friends," Link repeated to himself.

They were just friends, regardless of what anyone might be saying. He'd be dumb and blind if he hadn't noticed how beautiful she was with her creamy skin, soft strawberry locks full and wavy resting just above her shoulders, skin kissed by the sun, and eyes wide and doe-like shining green like emeralds. He was surprised that it had taken so long for him to realize that she was quite striking. He felt that familiar spring tighten in his lower stomach before a pain trickled down his neck to his spine.

He needed to stop that, whatever that was; it was dangerous for him to keep thinking those thoughts about a girl when he was in the middle of whatever the hell it was he was doing with Christy.

"I don't," Rhett started, paused, and started again. "I'm happy she makes you feel good, brother, but I don't want to see you gettin' hurt..." again had been implied.

Link lifted his glasses, pushing his palms against his eyes until he saw stars dance across the dark.

"Rhett," he started, dropping his frames back on the bridge of his nose and running a hand over his jaw. "I know you mean well, but there's nothin' goin' on man."

Right? Link didn't think so at least. He knew what it might look like but for now, it was okay the way it was. For now? He had thought for now? Yeah, he guessed he had.

Noah was like a cool drink of water on a hot summer day. She was like a balm for him, an escape from the pain he had felt almost every day. Rhett even enjoyed the girl's company, or he had until about a month ago he guessed. Until...

Link looked at his friend, brows drawn together, "this why you been a real prick lately?"

Rhett looked offended, glancing at Link with squinted eyes before focusing back on the road.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Link challenged.

"What crawled in your hole..."

"I don't mean to me, Rhett."

The bearded man bristled a little, sighing in frustration before slowing the car down. Link noticed they had reached a busy part of the freeway and traffic was starting to back up a little.

He tried again, "you been a lot colder to Noah lately..."

"I don't think..." Rhett tried, only to be cut off. Link wasn't ready to back down.

"That's the problem, man, you don't think."

"Hey!" He protested, finally having the car stopped and allowing him to give the bespectacled man his full attention. "That's enough, Link. I was only askin' you a question. You don't need to get all defensive if nothin' is goin' on."

"Nothin' is goin' on." Link growled, emphasizing his point.

Rhett studied his friends face for a minute, noticing the way his jaw clenched and the flair to his nostrils.

"Okay," he relented, "nothin' is goin' on then."

Link bit his tongue and turned his attention back outside of the car. He stared in the distance, brain bouncing all over the place with different things. He guessed he could see where Rhett was coming from. If he had been worried about the taller man he might've acted the same way, but he just couldn't wrap his head around everything.

Noah hadn't said anything to him about people giving her any trouble at work. He was just sure she would if something was wrong, right? Maybe not. Rhett had said that people were talking. Were they talking to her? Who was talking? Why did Rhett know about this and he didn't, especially because it had to do with him in the first place?

It was nobody's business what happened between him and any other person, and frankly, it was aggravating that people had assumed more about Noah and his relationship than what was even happening. Other than lunch, they rarely spent time alone with one another. Even if they did sometimes disappear with each other during that time, and they started bringing lunch for one or the other, and maybe they appeared a little, okay a lot more comfortable with one another...

He huffed out a sigh of frustration at the realization that maybe it did look suspicious. Link hated being wrong; he hated being wrong, and he hated when Rhett was the one to let him know he was wrong. Most of all, though, Link hated when his being wrong might be affecting someone else that he was particularly fond of.

Link pulled his phone out, pulling up her contact information before shutting off the screen and huffing again. He just needed to make sure she was okay with everything happening; not happening? Maybe he just needed to make sure that they were on the same page. He didn't really know, but what he did know is that he was worked up and she calmed him down. He unlocked the phone again, this time sending out his message with shaky fingers.

"Do you guys think a Sharknado costume would go over well?"

Noah glanced up at Lizzie, who was currently chewing on the end of her pencil in contemplation.

"I think it would," Kevin had responded, garnering agreement from everyone else except Ellie.

"I like it, personally, like for myself," she started, "but like, do you think Rhett and Link would get it?"

"I think so," Micah had answered. "I mean it's just a tornado with Sharks stuck to it."

"It would be really cool if we could get the sharks to move."

"They watch those kinds of movies right?"

Noah had remembered a conversation with Link about the very movie in question. "Link's seen it, yeah, not sure about Rhett but I'm sure..."

The discussion continued as her phone vibrated next to her laptop. Much to her surprise, Link's name flashed across the screen in a text notification. He had only ever texted her asking what she wanted for lunch, but it was past that time and he and Rhett had both been gone for the day on business. She swiped up to unlock the screen.

 _'4:16 pm- Hey. You still at work?'_

She typed out a quick reply, _'4:17 pm- Hi! Sure am. Do you need something?'_

He must need her to do something at the office since he's away, that must be why he had texted her. She tapped the toe of her all-star covered foot waiting for his reply.

"That could be the end goal. Noah, you on board?"

Noah glanced across the room at Kevin, "huh?"

"Distracted?" Lizzie rose a brow, glancing at Noah's phone as it vibrated again. Glancing down she saw it was Link again.

She quickly flipped the phone over, shrugging. "Nope, I just, um, sorry. I was just thinking about other ideas."

"Oh, cool, shoot," Micah suggested.

"Wait, we need to know if you think we should do Mythical Moms again or not," Ellie interjected.

"You mean like in the costume episode?" Noah asked, her finger tapping on the back of her phone case.

Lizzie continued to eye her as Kevin ran through the idea again and Noah agreed that it sounded like a good one. They discussed the layout of the episode, and what would need to happen to keep it moving seamlessly through shooting without falling behind since Rhett and Link would need to change their costumes at least twice.

"Now, what ideas were you thinking about?"

Noah glanced around at her co-workers, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth as she struggled to come up with something on the spot. The improv was usually left to Rhett and Link, she was just an organized writer and social media spotter.

"I, um..."

As if on cue, her phone vibrated again, the sound echoing in the small room. Noah picked it up and saw it was another text from Link. She still hadn't read his other message and if he needed her to do something...

"You should text him back before he gets mad," Lizzie crooned, typing away.

"Are you talking about Link?" Ellie interjected.

Noah looked between the two women, "he just wants me to do something for him..."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure."

Micah coughed deep in his throat, and both men turned back to their screens. All around her it seemed like everyone knew something they weren't telling her. After she voiced just that, earning her a raised brow from Lizzie, Noah finally rolled her eyes and unlocked her phone.

 _'4:19 pm- No, just checking in. Today's been a day.'_

 _'4:35 pm- Will you be around much longer?'_

Noah stared at her phone, bottom lip pulling between her teeth. She wasn't sure what his angle was. He seemed okay, if not a little down. Did he need her to be around for a while? She knew he was with Rhett and they were taking care of business the whole day. Could she be around? She glanced at the time. It was closer to quarter till now, and she usually left around now.

She danced around her reply in her head. Why was it so hard to commit to a response? She typed and then retyped something else before finally sitting the phone back down. She immediately picked it back up and her stomach did a little flip. This was stupid. Link was her boss. That was it. They had a working relationship and he was asking her about work.

But wasn't he her friend too? They had never talked much outside of their work environment. The whole crew sometimes would go to dinner or out to have a drink, Rhett and Link included, but their time had been spent spread between everyone. He was just being sociable and she was over thinking it.

"He's gonna get grumpy," Ellie muttered. "You know how impatient he is."

Noah didn't respond out loud, opting to roll her eyes instead. She wasn't sure why her co-workers were concerning themselves with her texting Link. There wasn't anything going on between them beyond what everyone had seen: eating lunch together, frequent chats, maybe a little more comfortable around one another...sometimes they closed themselves off from everyone else.

Noah sighed, yeah, okay. So maybe she could see how they might have misconstrued things. What did they think of the idea though? Like, was it weird that she was spending so much time with their boss? Nobody had really said anything to her before, so she imagined it wasn't that strange. There were other crew members that were close with the duo as well, it wasn't just her. Maybe that was the whole point though. She wasn't close with both men, she was close with Link; Link, who was currently having a lot of issues with his wife and had been seen growing increasingly more comfortable around her.

'Fuck', she thought, completely zoning out. What was happening? Was something happening? She felt blind sighted, taken back, and caught off guard. Nothing was going on with her and Link, right? She stared down at the screen of her phone and shook her head. No, of course, there wasn't anything going on. That was a silly thought that had manifested because of implications from her co-workers, and which had run off as she considered everything.

 _'4:44 pm- I was actually getting ready to wrap up soon.'_

She hit send, fingers lingering over the keyboard. Noah read his texts again. 'Today's been a day'. Her eyes flickered to the little 'read' notification under her reply, his three dots appearing as he started to type back almost immediately. Quickly she sent another message before she could change her mind.

 _'4:45 pm- Do you need me to be around?'_

His dots stopped, disappeared, then re-started after her new message had been 'read'. Noah quickly sat her phone down, clicking the lock button and flipping it over. She had no idea why she asked him if he needed her to be around, and now she was anticipating his response. It wasn't that big of a deal, so why did she feel like this whole text exchange was different than anything else?

It had been a few minutes and she didn't hear her phone vibrate. What if he wasn't going to respond? Noah started getting everything in order for her to leave for the day, nervously logging out of her workspace and filing her orders away for tomorrow's schedule and starting to say her goodbyes.

As time stretched on she started to worry that maybe her second text had made Link retract. Maybe it seemed like she was reading too far into their situation. God damn Lizzie and Ellie for planting that seed in her brain! She nearly jumped out of her skin when her phone vibrated against the hard top of her desk as she was packing up her bag to leave. With one last goodbye, she grabbed the phone and headed for the door, ignoring the stares at her back.

She didn't look until she got to her car, tossing her bag in the back before hopping behind the wheel of the little civic.

 _'4:53 pm- I wouldn't mind seeing you, but we're going to be late tonight.'_

Her skin felt like it was on fire, a blush creeping up her chest and across her cheeks. He wouldn't mind seeing her? Noah instinctively pulled her lip back between her teeth, realizing it was a little dry before applying a liberal amount of lip balm. Link's lip balm, actually. His picture on the front was from when he still had the wings in his hair. She smiled, thinking of his boyish charm.

She hadn't actually known Link when he had his shaggy hair, but she had seen plenty of content. He was attractive then, and with his hair cut, he had just refined that level of attraction to a different level. Noah looked back down at her phone, huffing out a breath. She didn't know where to proceed. She could be reading this all wrong, and if she was then being assumptive wouldn't be a good look.

 _'5:00 pm- I'm actually leaving now.'_

Simple and honest, but...

 _'5:00 pm- But how late? I could be around.'_


	5. Expectations

Noah sat with her feet curled underneath her, perched on the orange couch across from Link. He sat at his desk, but he had twisted around and was facing her. She was still surprised that she had agreed to come back to the office after having been home. She had briefly contemplated asking him to just come by her apartment since it was around 8 when he and Rhett had gotten back into town but that seemed too intimate. She was still reeling from earlier and she imagined him coming to her apartment might not have been the best idea.

So now she was sitting in his office. Not that she hadn't been in his office numerous times, but being close to 9 at night and being alone in the building gave this visit a new feel. Link shifted in his seat a bit, reaching for a pencil and tapping the eraser on the glass surface at his elbow.

"Is this weird?" He looked up at her, smirking, "this is weird right?"

Noah laughed, "it's always weird, isn't it? Welcome to Mythical Entertainment."

It was Link's turn to let out a quick guffaw before dropping his pencil and letting it roll away from his fingers. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

There was a silence then, between the two of them. Noah picked at her nails while Link bounced his foot in time with the music playing from his Bluetooth speaker. It was comfortable, just sitting there listening to the soft rock music drifting through the air.

"So," she pushed, "it's been a day, huh?"

Link actually groaned, rubbing a hand down his face before removing his glasses and pinching his eyes.

"That bad, huh?"

He dropped his frames back onto his nose, "it was long, real long."

He stood and crossed the room to the mini fridge that he and Rhett kept in their office. Inside was an assortment of different flavored waters and sodas. He grabbed two sprites before padding over to the couch, handing Noah one as he took a seat on the other end. She was facing him, her legs curled underneath her and her right elbow propped on the back of the couch cradling her head in her hand.

She graciously accepted his offer, fingers grazing his while the can was deposited into her extended hand. Link cracked his, taking a big swig.

"Tell me about it," she nearly whispered. Urging him on.

Link let out a puff of air, "can I ask you somethin' first?"

Link watched her cheek dimple as she smiled and nodded, opening her own drink and sipping at it. His conversation with Rhett moving back to the front of his mind. She didn't seem like anything was bothering her, but he had to make sure.

"Everything okay here?" He gestured around them, "I mean, here, at work."

"Like do you mean am I happy with my job, or..." she trailed off, placing her head back on her palm, eyes narrowing in confusion.

Man, Link did not know how he should proceed with this conversation. He was okay in awkward situations, and if anyone who knew him had a say then it'd be he was pretty good at creating them too. He was just worried about making Noah uncomfortable, he guessed. Well, maybe not uncomfortable, but they had a good thing going here and if he mucked it up...

"No, I mean, well," Link took another drink.

Noah could see that he was stalling. She wasn't sure what he wanted to ask her, but he had to know that she loved her job right? She poked at his arm, trying to keep the conversation light "what is it?"

" I guess I mean is everything okay...with, you know, everyone else?" He physically winced at the question.

"Oh," she studied him for a minute. Was he referring to the chatter she had gotten from Lizzie and Ellie earlier? Did someone say something to him too? Oh no, did he think that she had said something to someone? "Um, I mean I think everything is fine, why?" She felt the heat flush in her chest.

Link looked like he swallowed a bee.

"Rhett was talking to me earlier and he was just sayin' some things that got me thinkin' about other things and I don't know, just makin' sure."

He had said it all in one breath and Noah almost lost her cool. He seemed so nervous, maybe more nervous than she felt. She was sure they were on the same page right now, but to be sure she shifted on the couch, sitting lotus style, before asking, "what did he say?"

Link looked at her, smiling a little at the corner of his mouth. "He uh, well he said that people had been talkin'...about, about us."

Noah's mouth went dry. She quickly took another drink, nearly downing the rest of the can. So yeah, he was definitely referring to the same thing she had experienced earlier with her co-workers. How could she avoid this becoming even more awkward? It seemed impossible. She wasn't sure how to proceed. Luckily she didn't have to.

Link continued, effectively bumbling his way through his next sentence. "N-not that there's an us, or, or anything, but people are talkin' anyway."

Link could've walked downtown naked and felt less embarrassed than he did right now. He was a grown ass man, talking to a friend of his, and he could barely not stutter his way through an idea. He reckoned he hadn't been this nervous in a long time. It was stupid really. He was sitting in his office, somewhere familiar and comfortable, with someone he had known over a year. There was no reason he needed to be...

His thoughts immediately drifted off as she pulled that bottom lip between her dang teeth. She did that a lot, and it was effective in making him lose his mind a little. Her lips were so pouty, and when her teeth sunk down into them he could see how soft they were. She caught him staring, and a pretty blush danced its way across the bridge of her nose. He tore his eyes away.

"Sorry," he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck. "I know that's probably weird."

Noah didn't really think it was weird. She had thought a lot about the implications of her co-worker's vibes earlier, and she had concluded that yeah, maybe it did seem like more was happening. She voiced just that as she watched him shift around in his seat.

"So people really are talkin', huh?" He sighed, resting his head against the back of the couch.

"I mean, sort of, maybe? It could've honestly been my imagination running wild."

He smirked at her, "your imagination, huh?"

Her face was flaming. It was her turn to stutter, "Um, I-I, what I mean is..."

His hand came out, resting on her knee, "I was kidding."

They both stared down at where his palm pressed against the bare of her skin. He cleared his throat, removing his hand and sitting up straighter against the couch. Her skin had been supple and smooth under his touch, and he had felt something in his abdomen tighten up. Maybe Rhett had been right, maybe he was treading dangerous waters.

They shared a brief, comfortable silence before Noah's curiosity got the best of her.

"What did Rhett say?"

It was like the dam had been broken. It didn't feel awkward anymore. They had moved past that, at this point. They were both hyper-aware of one another's presence, but the air started to feel more familiar again.

"Just stuff, I guess. Stuff that, well, I guess stuff that made sense."

"Let me guess," she shifted a little, setting her drink down so she could use her fingers to tick off as she listed, "we buy lunch for each other, hang out sometimes, uhh, what else?" She asked, referring back to when she spent time reflecting earlier.

"You're pretty and I'm married, mostly."

Noah sucked in a breath and released it slowly. Link pulled up the corner of his mouth, cracking his knuckles, "he's right, too, which is the worst part."

He glanced over at Noah, a small, sad smile on his face. Her heart almost stopped beating. He had just admitted to her that he was attracted to her, but he couldn't do anything about it because of his wife. Her heart hurt a little, for both of them.

She broke eye contact first, "yeah, it's, I don't know. I think maybe it's too bad. You know?"

That's the best she could do to admit to him that she liked him a little too.

"Yeah, I do know," he responded softly before shifting on the couch to face her.

Link took a deep breath. This conversation was not what he had expected when Noah had come back to see him after he had gotten back with Rhett. He was actually pleasantly surprised that she had even agreed, and when she had shown up a half hour after Rhett had left she had found him in his office before he had even let her know where in the building he was. He knew he would ask her about the chatter around the office, but they had very much just admitted to one another that they liked each other or at the very least, he supposed, that they were attracted to one another.

Link mirrored Noah's earlier pose, head resting in his hand on the back of the couch. She remained facing him but had pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her leg and resting her chin on her right knee. Her green eyes were pale and bright in this light, and they peered up at him with wonder. She really was beautiful.

"So tell me about your bad day, then," she smiled at him warmly.

Link was grateful that they didn't linger on this for too long as he launched into a story about how they had been stuck in traffic for over an hour, making them late for their meeting. If they had lingered, he thought maybe he wouldn't have been able to keep trying with Christy for much longer.

They talked about their days, and things felt back to normal for the most part. Link had gotten them both some beef jerky and another drink from his and Rhett's stash, and she had told him about a time when she was younger and still lived in Pittsburgh involving too much beef jerky and a bet that had gone wrong. He had nearly sprayed her with his drink when they had started trading stories of their youth back and forth.

Eventually, they settled back into a comfortable silence and Noah wondered how in the world the man in front of her had 11 years on her age. His smile gave him a boyish charm and his laugh was contagious.

Then Link's phone rang out, and one look at his face had told Noah all she needed about the caller.

Link read Christy's text message: 'Hey, we'll all be in bed when you get home. Sweet dreams.'

Sweet dreams? She hadn't said anything like that to him in months. He thought it would just make him angry, but maybe Rhett had been right earlier: he was getting lonely. Link had barely touched another adult and he sure hadn't been intimate with anyone in a long time. He felt a little flutter in his belly at her sweet words. Being so near to Noah, he realized he was almost desperate for any kind of comfort.

" You know," Link finally spoke, an octave softer than he had before. "I never thought I'd be here at 36."

Noah watched as his eyes focused on the wall in front of him, lips parted as his brows drew together. She knew what he was talking about without him needing to say. She knew it was Christy that had sent him a message, but he always got so sad and seemed so far away when it came to her. She hated that part; the way his eyes grew unfocused when he was inside his own mind, and the way he bit on the left side of his cheek when he was contemplating something. Link was an open book and his emotions were often written across the way his muscles would twitch and his body tensed.

"I mean," he continued when she kept silent, "none of this, here at all." Link gave a quick wave of his hand around the space he shared with the taller man that had left hours ago. "Never in a million years would I have guessed my life would have taken me where I am right now, you know?"

Noah shifted a little on the couch, letting herself get more comfortable. "I don't think any of us can really know where we'll end up," she stated. "I mean, we have all these expectations for our lives, but life has no expectations for us."

"When I married Christy," his jaw twitched, "I think my expectations of being with her for the rest of our lives wasn't too much to ask."

"No," she agreed, "that just proves my point though. That's what you expected, but maybe life has other plans for you."

Link barely nodded. She would have missed it had she not seen his chin bounce just the slightest.

"We, it," Link shook his head now, eyes completely unfocused as he remembered a different time. "It started before she was unfaithful. We knew there was something wrong."

He had never admitted that to her before. By the way his eyes danced around the room, she reckoned he probably hadn't talked about this part of his troubles much. Probably to Rhett, but to someone else seemed pretty foreign.

"Do you know that we had Lando to try and save our marriage?"

He was looking at her now, eyes glossy with tears that he sniffed back and refused to let fall.

She hadn't known that, and she felt for the man more than she had before. She listened as he continued, noticing that he just needed to get all of this off his chest.

"We um, we'd lost each other a while after we had Lincoln. I was trying to make it in this YouTube thing, she was focused on the kids and homeschooling them. She was," he shook his head again, brows drawing down over his ocean eyes, "she was so dang mad at me most of the time. I can remember her screamin' at me once that it wasn't fair. I don't even know what she was talkin' about."

"That sounds," Noah let out a puff of air, "I mean, that just sounds so hard."

"It was!" He glanced at her before turning away and standing up all of a sudden. Noah just watched him as he paced the length of his office, hands gesturing wildly as he went.

"Sh-she was always yellin' about somethin'. I swear nothin' I ever did was good enough for her. I know maybe I wasn't always around, but I was tryin' real hard to make our lives a little easier. I swear, I swear that I would've done anything for her if she asked, which is why I agreed to have another baby when she said it would make everything better!"

Noah stayed rooted to her seat. She had seen Link mad before. She had seen him stomp around, storm offset, and slam doors, but this was different. He was mad, sure, but he was so passionate right now. She could almost feel the electricity crackling around him.

"I love my son. I love my kids, but it isn't fair. We built this fucking family under the pretense that we were gonna make it work. We," he stopped pacing when his voice cracked on the last word. "My kids, they gotta go through this now. They gotta," he threw himself onto his office chair, "if I can't find it in me to get over this, they're the ones that gotta suffer."

Noah was off her seat in a second when he lifted his glasses and squeezed his eyes, a watery gasp slipping from his throat as he was slammed with the weight of what was happening. She crossed the floor, not knowing how to comfort him but knowing that she couldn't sit across the room and let him be alone in his misery.

"Link," she started softly, reaching a hand for his shoulder and feeling how tense he was through the fabric of his black tee. "Link," she tried again as he trembled beneath her fingers, "I'm here, and I'm so sorry."

Noah was pulled against him when his arms slid around her waist and hips, his head pressing against her right hip bone. This felt intimate, but she wasn't opposed to being Link's lifeline right now if he needed her to be. She very slowly touched his hair, and when he didn't protest began to run her fingers through it.

Link didn't know why he had chosen to wrap his arms around Noah. When she had initially tensed under his palm he had almost pulled back, but when her fingers found his hair and she became softer under his touch he had done nothing but pull her tighter and bury his face deeper against the thick material of her sweater. Rhett had been the only person that he had felt physically comforted by in months. Jessie had hugged him a few times and kissed his stubbled cheek, but holding onto Noah felt better.

It was new and fragile, and her holding onto him wasn't because they had shared 30 years of history between them. She wasn't his best friend like Rhett or his best friend's wife; she wasn't here out of obligation, but because she wanted to be. He wished he could find the words to tell her how much he appreciated her friendship. Link didn't know how long he held her against him, soaking her clothes after he tossed his glasses onto the surface of his desk, but the cold chills that had threatened to steal his breath away were kept at bay with every stroke of her fingers against his scalp.

Noah fought hard to keep the tremble from her fingers. Link's hair was soft against her skin, and she briefly noted that even though he used product to keep it uppity, it still slid through her fingers like silk. She felt him shift against her stomach as his arms loosened their grip around her, so she stopped her ministrations and pulled back just a little bit.

His eyes were rimmed pink and bleary, but he quickly wiped away any leftover tears and ran his hands over his face.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled into his palms.

"No, it's fine," she replied, surveying the spots of water on her sweater. "You're going through some tough stuff." And I wanted to be here for you.

Link cleaned his glasses before placing them back on, glancing up at her from his seat. "Yeah, I just, I don't know. It gets so overwhelming sometimes."

She studied his face for a bit, his eyes dancing between hers and a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. When he stood up, she held her ground as the energy between them kept her rooted in place. He invaded her space, their eyes not breaking contact. Her heart swelled for him for so many reasons.

"Come here," he finally said, pulling Noah against his chest and hugging her again.

She wrapped her arms around his waist, breathing in his scent.

"Thank you," he said into her hair. "I know that I say that to you a lot, but I really mean it."

She tightened her grip on him until she felt his phone vibrate again. He sighed against her before he let her go. Noah felt like her time spent with Link was coming to an end for the night, so she gathered her things and slowly made her way to the door as he pulled out his phone and typed out a quick reply.

"Hey," he called out distractedly before finally looking up and giving her his full attention. "Chinese tomorrow?"

"My favorite!"

"I know." He smiled.

Link crossed over to her, opening the door and stepping out into the hall as Noah started to make her leave. They exchanged a few more words before Link stopped at the end of the hall, watching as Noah weaved her way through the workstations toward the back of the building and the parking lot.

A lot had happened and he was exhausted, but watching Noah sashay away from him was one of the highlights of his day as her hips swung back and forth. Not for the first time Link had one thought as she glanced over her shoulder, catching him watching her leave, before giving a small wave and pushing through the door to the back exit. 'Shit.'


	6. Brunch

Link groaned into the crook of his elbow as the noise outside his office door permeated his brain. He could hear Lily screaming something about Lincoln, followed by heavy footsteps past the door, and finally the shrill scream of a mother at her wits end with her fighting children. He should really get up and go see what all the commotion was about, but if he opened his eyes he feared his head might literally split in two.

It was Sunday morning, and last night he and Rhett had won two Streamy's. They had celebrated by attending an after party at some posh roof-top bar. Rhett had Jessie by his side all night, Stevie had brought her girlfriend, and Link had kept a drink in his hand. It was the only thing that had kept him in good spirits all night, regardless of the accomplishments he and Rhett had achieved.

In past years, Link had always brought Christy with him. They had made a whole day of it; going to the spa together, getting their hair styled along with their clothes, and then they attended the after parties and celebrated early into the morning. Often times they stayed at a hotel together.

None of that had happened yesterday. Link had gone to the gym before doing some networking. He had even gone to the office for a bit, before allowing someone to style him but doing his own hair. All throughout the day he had wondered what Noah was doing, and he had even briefly contemplated asking her to accompany him for the evening but had quickly dropped that idea noting that it wasn't great to even consider it.

Since that night in his office earlier in the week, Link had found himself thinking about the little redhead more than he would like to admit. When he wasn't with her, he was wondering what she was doing and when they were together he was admiring her in all forms. When she laughed, he laughed, and when she smiled then he would smile with her. He knew it was a dangerous game he was playing, but he couldn't stop it.

Link was drawn out of his thinking by more loud screaming. He pulled the pillow over his face and buried his head even further to muffle the noise around him. He really was in no mood. He didn't drink often, but when he did he was usually a bear the next day. Link didn't do well with pain, especially when he brought it on himself.

A soft knock sounded on his door and pounded through his head. He grunted at the noise.

"Daddy?" came softly through the heavy wood.

Link recognized his youngest son's voice. He peeled the pillow off his head, slowly opening his eyes against the sunshine streaming through the blinds. As expected, the light was blinding and he felt his stomach churn over and over.

"Daddy?" Lando called again softly, "are you awake?"

Link had to try three times to answer the boy loud enough for him to hear, dragging himself to a sitting position as the door cracked open and the small blonde boy slipped inside. Lando ran to Link, crawling beside him, completely unaware that his father was fighting a losing battle with his nauseous stomach.

"They're fighting," Lando whispered, looking up with his huge blue eyes. He looked so much like his mom, but he had his Dad's eyes.

"Hmpf," Link rubbed his temples. "Why...w-what are they goin' on about?"

Lando shrugged a shoulder as two sets of feet ran past the office door and Christy could be heard yelling at Lincoln about respecting his older sister.

"Lincoln pissed Lily off."

It was said so innocently, that Link had to think about what he had just heard for two beats of his heart before he responded. "Where'd you hear that talk son?"

Lando started to fiddle with the blanket Link had been using while the older man extracted himself from the couch in search for the Tylenol in his desk drawer.

"I heard you tell Mama you were pissed at her..." he trailed off, rubbing the fleecy blanket between his small fingers.

Link sighed, tossing back a few of the small red pills dry in search of refuge from the pounding in his head. "Well, you can't say words like that."

"You do," Lando countered.

Link wondered when his youngest son had grown up so much; when he had started talking back and picking up on things. He thought it was just yesterday that Lando was waddling around the house in a diaper and now he was arguing why he should be allowed to swear.

A pounding on the door of Link's office pulled him away from explaining the difference between adults and children, and effectively drove a stake through his brain.

"Damn!" Link exclaimed, rubbing his temples and praying for relief. Noticing Lando looking at him, he threw a finger in his direction as he stood and crossed to the door. "Don't you repeat that."

Christy was behind the door, church clothes in place and lips pursed.

"Lando in here?" She looked over Link's shoulder, spotting her son there. "We gotta go, baby. We'll be late."

Link pushed away from the frame, hearing a door slam from somewhere upstairs indicating his oldest two kids were still upset somewhere in the house.

"Listen to your mother," Link plopped back down on the couch, rustling the blonde's hair as Lando hugged his dad affectionately and ran off to find his shoes. For the first time, Link noticed he was wearing little suit pants and a pressed button down. Lando and Lily had never argued about going to church with Christy on Sunday mornings, but Lincoln was more difficult. When Link had stopped going, Lincoln had tried and failed, to argue his way out of going too.

Christy lingered near the open door, eyeing the sofa where Link had slept and was currently resting his eyes, head leaned back against the cushions. Jade had run in when the door opened, and her warm presence against his leg brought him comfort.

"You want me to close the curtains?" She asked, making her way to the heavy drapes before he had even grunted in response.

As soon as they fell closed, the room darkened around him and Link felt a fraction better. He muttered a thank you before he cracked open an eye, watching her retreating back after she had placed a bottle of water he hadn't even noticed before on his desk. She only glanced back once, seemingly waiting for him to say something more, before closing the door behind her when he remained silent.

A few minutes later Link heard the front door close, and a stillness settled around him. It took a few more minutes for the Tylenol to kick in but Link was grateful for the relief, and the bottled water, as he plucked his phone off the floor to check the time.

The fact that it was closing in on 10am was noted only for a moment when the text notification was spotted.

'2:51am- You should get some sleep, Link. It's late and you're drunk.'

His heart clenched when he saw Noah's message. All other notifications forgotten, Link unlocked his phone and clicked to expand the messages. He had no idea what he had even said to her in his drunken state and the anxiety had begun to prickle up his spine. He had texted her first.

L- '2:17am- We won, you kno w that.?'

N- '2:20am- Hey! I heard from the group chat. Congratulations!'

L- '2:22am- I forgt ab out that'

L- '2:22am- thanks you'

N- '2:25am- You're welcome! I'm going to bed. Let's talk more soon :)'

L- '2:28am- wantd you t o come tonight'

N- '2:30am- Are you drunk?'

L- '2:35am- ya'

L- '2:35am- dont matter. i mean t said'

L- '2:36am- meant what i. said'

L- '2:36am- so pretty'

N- '2:38am- I think we should talk tomorrow. Go to sleep, k?'

L- '2:39am- dontwan to. just wan to talk to you'

N- '2:39am- I want to talk to you too, but I don't think it's a good idea right now.'

L- '2:42am- Why? I like y uy'

N- '2:51am- You should get some sleep, Link. It's late and you're drunk.'

He had fallen asleep before he had gotten her last message, and boy was he grateful. He ran a hand over his stubbled jaw, breathing hard through his nostrils. He needed to do some damage control. As quickly as his hangover would allow, he typed out the only thing he could think of saying.

'9:54am- I'm so sorry.'

He didn't hear back right away, which drove his anxiety even further, but he had to take into account that she had still been awake at 3am so she was probably still sleeping. Link meandered through his home in a fog, the last of the alcohol in his system sweating out as he took a hot shower. He opted out of breakfast, instead of making himself a smoothie (without dairy because the thought of it made his stomach churn).

It was almost 11:30 when his phone lit up with a notification.

'11:26am-Are you feeling up to brunch? :)'

Link stared at his phone. No, he didn't think he could get down any food but he didn't really care. She was giving him an olive branch after his ridiculous fumble the night before and he was going to take it.

'11:28am- Sure! Where were you thinking?'

Link heard the car pull into the driveway as he pushed himself off the couch. He briefly noted that usually Christy and Jessie took the kids to lunch after church, but he was more concerned with getting dressed at the moment. His mind was wrapped around the fact that he and Noah had never hung out together outside of work. He was a little more excited than he wanted to admit.

"Link!" Christy called as he reached the door to his (Christy's?) bedroom.

Link disappeared into the room, eyeing the bed before making his way to his perfectly organized closet.

"Link?" Christy had found him, lingering in the doorway of their closet. "I bought donuts, I thought it'd be nice to...are, are you going somewhere?"

Link was buttoning his red and blue plaid shirt when he turned to face her. "I'm, yeah. I'm going to have brunch with a friend." He was aware that he had left out the fact that his friend was female.

Christy crossed her arms across her chest, "oh. I thought Jessie said Rhett wasn't feelin' well this morning."

"Rhett isn't my only friend, Chris." Link slipped his wallet into his back pocket as his phone vibrated on the closet shelf closest to Christy. He watched her glance down at his screen, before nearly leaping across the space and scooping the phone up. He pushed past her toward the en suite bathroom.

Christy was at his heels. "Will you be home for dinner? I was thinking I would make pasta with lemon sauce and...are you even listening to me?"

He wasn't. He was replying to Noah, agreeing to meet at Harry's in 20 minutes. He smiled down at the phone, placing it screen down on the counter and grabbing his jar of pomade. Christy was over his shoulder in the mirror.

"No," he answered honestly. "I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

Her jaw clenched and her eyes started shining in the light of the bathroom. "Who is Noah?" His wife finally bit out. So she had seen her name on his screen.

"She's my friend," Link replied after a moment, fluffing his hair into place and not realizing his mistake until it was too late.

"She?" Christy seemed surprised. She moved toward Link as he turned around. "You're going to meet a woman for brunch?"

Link felt his stomach drop. He felt guilty. Why did he feel guilty? Noah was just his friend, and he was allowed to have those. Even if she was a rather attractive friend that he might be developing some kind of feelings for...

"She's my friend, Christy."

Blocking his exiting the room, Christy stood her ground. "Just your friend?"

"Yes! Jesus Christ, Chris. What's gotten into you?"

"You...you used to smile like that when I would text you."

Her voice was small. Link stared down into her heart-shaped face, his heart leaping up to his throat. He did still love her, he did...he did, didn't he? He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket again and he knew who it was. He needed to leave.

Christy stared back at Link, a challenge in her eyes.

"I thought we were tryin' to fix us..." she trailed off, voice barely a whisper.

"We were," he replied, not missing a beat.

"But now?" Christy's chin jut out, maintaining eye contact.

Link knew what this was. He knew what Christy was searching for. If she could catch him romantically involved with another woman, she could play double jeopardy with her own infidelity. If he was dating someone else, she could either argue for his forgiveness or, if it came to this, argue his infidelity to a judge since they were technically still married if not "trying" to work on their marriage. But he wasn't dating anyone, and Christy had no right to push him.

"I gotta go," he muttered, pushing past her before kissing his kids goodbye and leaving. He pulled out his phone and noted that Noah was already on her way to Harry's. He smiled again, before glancing up and seeing Christy watching him through the bay window. His smile faded as he drove away.

Noah sat in a corner booth at Harry's Family Restaurant waiting for Link. She had been there for a few minutes and was anxiously awaiting his arrival. She wanted to talk to him about his drunk texts from the night before, but she wasn't sure how she would bring it up. All she knew is that she needed to see him because this wasn't a conversation that she could have via text. On top of that, this would be the first time they had seen each other, alone, outside of work.

Her thoughts were pulled back to the here and now when she spotted his car pull into the lot, and the man on her mind hopped out of the driver's side. She immediately drew her lip between her teeth. He looked really good for having drunk text her at 3am. He wore his black jeans tight, his plaid shirt was one she remembered made his blue eyes pop even if she couldn't currently see them hidden behind his sunglasses. Everything about him made her feel warm all over, which is something she had become more and more familiar with as they grew closer.

Waving Link over when he came through the door, Noah jumped out of the booth to give him a hug in greeting noticing that his stubble was grown in a bit. This is new, she thought when they hugged.

Link spotted her immediately, even before she jumped out to greet him. Her strawberry locks were pulled up in a little messy bun on top of her head, short tendrils of the locks falling out of the back and resting gracefully against her long neck. She was wearing a cropped olive green sweater that looked two sizes too big, and a strip of her flat mid-drift was visible between the bottom of the hem and the top of her little denim shorts. Immediately he felt that familiar spring tighten in his lower abdomen.

"I ordered you some coffee and ice water," she said as they slid into their booths.

"Perfect," he thanked her. Pulling out his prescription glasses and swapping them for his prescription sunglasses. The light was bright inside the diner, and he squinted against it.

Noah wrinkled her nose at him, "it's one of those mornings, huh?"

Link rubbed a hand over his face, stopping to press at his eyelids before finally scratching at his stubbly jaw. "You have no idea."

The waitress came over with their drinks, placing another menu in front of Link. He promptly pushed it away.

"Well," she started dressing her coffee while passing a sweet-n-low to Link without him needing to ask, "I sort of know..."

His head fell in mock shame, "I am so sorry."

"I know, that's what you sent me earlier." She smirked at him, a little dimple forming on her right side.

"Well I am," he sipped his coffee before continuing. "I was out of line."

She stirred her own mug, sipping it slowly. She had spent a long time after sending her last text waiting for his drunken response. It had never come, and she had been both grateful and sad. She really did like talking to him. Even if they had sort of skirt past the subject earlier in the week, she thought maybe it had been left unfinished.

"I didn't really...mind, you know?" She glanced up at him, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

His eyebrow rose over the frame of his glasses. "You...didn't?"

Noah shook her head. Link continued, "I said some things..."

"I know," she interrupted. "I was there, remember?"

He cracked a smile, "no! I don't!"

They both smiled, but she's the one that spoke again. "Did you mean it? Like, do you...like me." Her cheeks immediately flushed pink. "That sounds so stupid when I say it now."

Link smiled even wider. Her blush was so cute and made her green eyes light up.

"It's not stupid. It's, okay maybe it's stupid but I said it first and I'm used to stupid!"

"Hey!" She playfully swatted at his arm.

Link took another drink of his coffee, letting the warm liquid settle in his stomach before deciding he needed the water more.

"All things aside, I, um, yeah," Link smiled at Noah. He was about to take a big risk here, but the way she smiled at him made him feel it even more. "I do...like you, that is."

Her bottom lip pulled between her teeth and Link couldn't help but flick his eyes to her lips, lingering on them for a few beats before meeting her eyes again. She was smiling as her teeth released her pouty bottom lip and the little gap between her two front teeth made him smile back at her.

"I like you too." There, she said it. It might not go anywhere, but she said it.

Link stared at her, unable to reply before the waitress approached them for their orders. Noah asked for blueberry pancakes, he ordered dry toast which made her flash her dimple at him again. She knew exactly why he wanted nothing more than toast.

"So," Link started, picking at his nails. It was a nervous twitch he had done for as long as he could remember.

"So..." she echoed.

"You like me, huh?" The smirk on his face was wicked, and his eyebrows bounced in her direction.

"Oh, shut up," she tried and failed to sound angry. She did like him, but she knew better than to push him on the subject or to read too much into it. Link had a lot going on and he needed to come to his own conclusions about everything.

"When we," Link cleared his throat, "What I mean is, I don't...I don't really know what to do now. I, I never, I don't know how..."

"Link," Noah reached across the table, stilling his fidgeting fingers with her own. "It's okay. I know you have, like, so much going on. I just want to be here for you. We're friends."

Friends, they both thought as their fingers rested against one another's. Link tentatively used his thumb to brush against her knuckles before the waitress came to deposit their food. They broke away from each other instantly.

She smothered her pancakes in butter and syrup as he continued, "Christy asked about you today. Well, not about you but...about...you..."

Noah washed her bite of blueberry pancake down with some coffee. "I didn't know she knew who I was?"

"She doesn't," he replied while launching into what had happened between him and his wife just that morning.

She listened while finishing off half her pancakes and stealing a piece of his toast. He didn't protest and instead had taken a bite of her pancakes. She let him eat almost a whole one while they were talking, taking note that they seemed to be settling just fine in his stomach.

"Does she know I work for you?" Noah asked.

He shook his head, "no, I don't think so. She wouldn't've asked about if she knew who you were already."

Noah pushed her plate across the table to Link, who took the hint that he could finish off the pancakes. She spread some strawberry jam on his toast after he handed the remaining piece to her.

"We are just friends, though. I just, I feel bad if that's causing issues for you."

"It's not," he talked around a mouthful of food before washing it down with water. "You're one of the best things in my life right now."

Noah didn't know how to respond. She wanted to tell him that he was one of the best things in her life too, but she couldn't. It was too risky with their dynamic. She couldn't risk losing her job, and there was a real chance that Christy and he would work it out for the good of their children. She didn't want to invest her heart in something that would only get it broken. When had she started thinking about all of this anyway? Link was just her boss a couple months ago; her handsome, hardworking, caring boss.

She sighed, smiling at him and feeling her cheeks flaming. She didn't WANT to invest, but sometimes the heart wants what it wants.

The last few bites of pancake were forgotten. Link stared back at her and it was like the rest of the restaurant disappeared around him. It was only her. Link had no idea when this had happened. He had no idea when she had become this important to him, but he didn't know if he cared at that moment.

She moved before he did, pushing aside the toast and pushing up over the table. Link forgot all his senses; he forgot about Christy, work, his anxiety, he forgot about everything as he leaned up and forward to meet her. They were inches apart...

Then he knocked over a glass and drenched himself, and Noah's daisy dukes, in ice cold water.

She pulled back immediately, eyes as wide as saucers and searching the table for something dry to sop up the water on her freezing crotch. Link felt the heat creep up his neck and his head get warm and fuzzy with embarrassment.

"I am so sorry!" He exclaimed, reaching behind them for napkins off the empty booth behind them.

"That seems to be your motto today," Noah tried to joke, accepting the additional napkins before the waitress brought a dish towel and asked if they wanted more water. Link could only mumble no before asking for the check and insisting he would cover it all. A few minutes later they found themselves in the parking lot, Noah digging in the back seat of her little civic for something to sit on so she wouldn't get her front seat wet.

"Really, it's fine. Shit happens," she said, pulling out an old hoodie that had been shoved under her seat.

"Yeah, don't I know it," he leaned against her car, watching her position the hoodie to sit on. He wanted to crawl in a hole and hide.

Finally she stood before him, ready to leave. He didn't want her to go, because that meant he would need to go too.

He chewed on his cheek before, "I just don't want to lose my kids."

It came out a lot more quiet than he had intended. He wasn't sure she had even heard him until she wrapped her arms around him.

"That's not going to happen." She whispered into his chest.

Link's eyes watered while he held her. She was so incredibly sweet, and she really wanted what was best for him. Don't mind that they had almost kissed one another a few minutes ago! His heart seized in his chest because he knew that he really, really did care about this girl but he could never have her. He couldn't do that to his kids. He couldn't do that to himself. If Christy took them away...

He couldn't let that happen.


	7. She Should Just Go Home

**This chapter contains minor adult themes. Nothing too crazy, but just thought I'd** **include those** **since the story** **is starting to move into a bit of a different direction than previously. Curious? Keep reading...**

"Thanks for being your mythical best." Link leaned into the camera, flashing a smile he knew the beasts would love. Rhett told them all to stay tuned for More after they had done a skit about whales, and just like that he was singing the mail song and moving his seat over to make room for Noah and Jen.

Of course Noah had nabbed the seat right next to him. He caught a whiff of her cotton candy scent and immediately the image of her leaning toward him over the table flashed in his mind. He had wanted to kiss her. He had been pushing up to meet her before he had spilled that dang water. Her mouth had been so soft and inviting, tinted mauve and pouty. It was like no one else had been in the little diner.

Link's head had been spinning the past two days, since then. He hadn't talked to Noah much since he'd been really busy, but he saw Christy every day. He saw her with his kids, saw her trying to hold onto some bit of normalcy even if he wouldn't give it. It had been half a year since his wife's infidelity, and he still hadn't touched her. He was starting to feel the increased frustration of not laying with a woman, and he had recently started thinking about getting a new bed and moving back into the room with the blonde.

But...

His attraction to Noah had hit him like a sledgehammer. He could barely be near the girl without getting a twitch in his groin. Like right now, for example. He was hyper-aware of the fact that her high waist jeans fit her like a second skin, and that her boat neck crop top hung off one, silky shoulder.

It wasn't just a physical thing, though. He loved the way she laughed, and how her nose crinkled when she was embarrassed. He loved the way she nibbled on her lip out of habit, and how her foot bounced up and down when she was nervous. Link loved how she listened to him. He loved how she was honest, and a hard-worker. He just loved...

"You okay man?" Rhett jabbed him in the side.

"Ouch!" Link startled, "what'd you do that for man?"

Rhett only motioned toward Link's other side, and he turned to see the object of his affection smiling and holding a letter his direction. Her eyes were sparkling and he might've held them a fraction longer than he meant to. Clearing his throat he took the letter and started to read.

The rest of More was spent poking jabs at one another and testing out the interesting puzzle boxes a mythical beast had sent them. At one point, the outside of his left leg brushed up against the outside of her right leg under the desk. Rhett had eyed him warily, but they had all recovered.

After the wrap-up, Stevie called a break and the gang started to gather up their materials. Link watched as Noah picked up the puzzle boxes.

"Those were pretty cool, huh?" He smiled, scratching the back of his neck.

She examined the box, "yeah. It really is amazing what some people can do."

"Mm," he mumbled, "so, um, you free later? I, I was just hopin' maybe we could talk..." Link trailed off. They had been dancing around the almost kiss for a couple days and he knew they needed to discuss it. They were adults, after-all.

Her eyes bounced around his face, and she licked her lips before replying. "Uh, I, yeah. Yes. I mean, I'm free."

"I'll text you?"

She shrugged, her lip drawing between her teeth before popping out when she smiled at him. "Sure."

Noah watched him walk away. She tried not to make it so obvious that she was appreciating the view. His black jeans fit him snug, cuffed at the bottom to fall right at the top of his boots. His grey tee was slim fit, and his hair was a little more tussled than uppity.

"You alright?" Jen's probing surprised her and she flinched.

"Yes! I'm, yeah, sorry. Let's go." Noah quickly shoved the rest of the materials into the box they had carried them over in.

Jen glanced toward Link but didn't say anything. She just followed Noah's lead, who walked toward the storage area thinking about her upcoming conversation with their boss.

She wasn't stupid, she knew what Link wanted to talk about. She wanted to talk about it too. They kept going back and forth between staying friends and admitting that they liked one another or almost kissing in public. They couldn't keep skirting around it.

The rest of the day went by, and Noah noticed a few wary looks but no one had said anything to her. She already knew that Ellie and Lizzie had speculated things between the two of them, and Link had told her that Rhett had his reservations as well, but no one else had really approached her at all. Link had texted her that they had to leave the office but asked if she could meet him there around 7. He promised to bring her food, so of course, she agreed to it.

Now it was just about that time and she was lounging in his office chair, shoes off and feet up on his desk while his speaker crooned out soft alternative music. He wasn't there yet, but she figured he wouldn't mind. It was a long day and she hadn't eaten since lunch. As if on cue, her stomach growled. She leaned back further and closed her eyes. A minute later her phone buzzed, and she saw that Link was around the corner. He had picked his car up at home after Rhett had dropped him off and he was sorry he was running late. Fifteen minutes later he was there, sitting on the couch, where she had moved too, with a pizza between them sharing a little tub of garlic dipping sauce.

As expected, he hadn't been upset with her in his chair and had even told her she looked better in it than he did. She had rolled her eyes and told him that was impossible and now she enjoying the cheese and sausage pizza he had brought them both. He had just finished telling her about the production meeting for Buddy System, and she had just finished filling him in on a couple ideas she would bring to the table tomorrow afternoon at their writer's meeting. Finally, after a few minutes, Link brought them back around to the reason he had asked her to meet with him.

"We haven't talked much since Sunday," he started.

"You've been busy," she retorted.

He nodded, "still, we should probably, you know..."

"Talk about how I would've kissed you if you hadn't doused me in cold water?" She laughed. Inside she was nervous.

His brow shot above the dark rim of his glasses, amused, "I would've kissed you back, you know that."

Noah couldn't keep looking at him. His eyes were too intense and she needed to keep her cool if they were going to address this. She started to fidget with the hem of her shirt.

"We keep saying we're friends, but, I don't know. We, we..." she didn't know how to breach this next part.

"We keep doin' and sayin' things that we ain't s'posed to be doin' or sayin' as just friends?"

He got it, she realized. They were on the same page and that made her sweat a little. This conversation could change the whole dynamic of their relationship.

"I mean, yeah." She looked back at him. His head was rested back against the couch, but it was facing her. His hair was practically laying across his forehead like he hadn't cared much about it. She liked it. "I don't really know where we stand sometimes. We agree that nothing should happen, then you're drunk texting me at 3 am ."

Link looked back at the ceiling. In the soft glow of his office, Noah's hair was more gold than red and he noted that she was almost angelic. He took a deep breath, trying to stay focused. They needed to be honest with each other. He needed to be open.

"Can I be honest?" He asked her. She assured him that he could so he summoned his courage and was. "I thought I was gonna try and work it out with Christy. I," he took another breath," I was tryin', really I was, but then I don't know. I realized that what she had done was somethin' I might never be able to move on from, and then..then you..." He chose that moment to look at her again.

She had curled her legs underneath her and was facing him, her elbow curled on the back of the couch and her head rested on her arm. The way she watched him made him feel like he was a teenager talking to his first crush again. He was nervous. Electricity crackled around him.

"I like you, Link," she said softly. His breath caught. "I know you have a lot going on, and that's okay, but I like you. I just needed you to know that."

His voice cracked, "I like you a lot..." His voice was small and trailed off.

Noah's heart was threatening to beat through her chest, "but?"

"But I'm a mess, girl. I'm 36, I-I'm living with my estranged wife, I got three kids I might lose if she decides..." Link huffed in frustration. "You know the other day she tried to bait me into sayin' we were datin' so she could use that against me?"

Noah furrowed her brow. "Why would she do that?"

"To make herself look better if we go in front of the judge."

"But she cheated on you first..." Noah had leaned toward him.

Link nodded, "I know, but that was six months ago. We been livin' together, and I guess we been tryin' to work on our marriage, or she has and I ain't been too receptive like I said. It would look like I was the one at total fault here. She could, she, I think she could take half of everything I have but even worse, she could take my kids away if it looked like this was me that had done it all."

"That' not fair!" Noah was almost yelling, but Link let her. He had yelled about the very same thing earlier.

"I can't lose them, Noah. They're, they're my kids. They're the most important thing to me."

"I already told you," she started, reaching out to him over their pizza box and placing a manicured hand on his upper arm. "That's not going to happen."

"It might if I let myself fall for you." _Even more than I already have._

Noah stared at him. His eyes were shiny and the skin around them was crinkled as his face fell. He was so torn.

"This really sucks." She meant it. It did suck because she had already fallen for him at least a little bit. She knew it was going to be a long-shot, but dang if it didn't hurt just a little.

"I know," he responded, boldly grabbing her hand from his upper arm and threading his fingers through hers.

Noah used her free arm to move the pizza from between them onto the coffee table and made her way over to him. Link watched her move close and lifted his arm to let her slide underneath it. Her head rested on his shoulder and chest, her shins pressed against his outer thigh as she continued to sit on her feet, wrapping her arms around her knees as she relaxed into his side.

"So what's all of this mean?" She asked. "I mean, for us what's this mean?"

Link rested his cheek against the crown of her head. "I don't know just yet, but right now we gotta just keep doin' what we're doin' I guess."

She lifted her head, inches away from his face again. Link noticed this close that she had flecks of grey around her irises, fading into the green.

"We need to keep almost kissing and telling each other we like one another?"

Her smirk could've melted him into the leather of the seat they were on. His eyes bounced around her face. This close he could see so many details about her, and her skin looked truly flawless.

"I don't think you're a mess, by the way." Her voice was soft, but she was so close that Link could feel little puffs of air as she spoke.

"I hope I believe that someday."

Whatever would have happened next, Link's phone ringing out from his pocket startled them both. Noah jumped away from him like he had shocked her. Link pulled the phone out. It was Rhett. He eyed Noah gathering up the trash as he answered his friend. Rhett had just wanted to know if Link remembered they had an early meeting, and that he would need to get up earlier. Link spoke briefly while his eyes monitored Noah's every mood. By the time he hung up with Rhett, Noah was standing near the door.

"It's getting late," she said, "I should probably go home."

He stood and crossed over to her, opening the door and agreeing that they should get going. He hadn't even gone inside when he had been home and at this point, Lando was probably sleeping and his two oldest were heading that way soon.

It was a little awkward, their goodbye, but when he wrapped his arms around her she clung to his back. They stood there for what seemed like hours but was really only a few minutes. Noah was nibbling on her bottom lip when they pulled away and Link reached up, fingers resting against her jaw as his thumb plucked her lip out from between her teeth.

"You're gonna bite right through that thing one day," he joked.

She mumbled a shy apology and pressed her cheek into his palm.

"I like it." He told her.

Noah reached up and grabbed his hand from her face, "goodnight, Link." She lowered his hand, gently squeezing his fingers before letting them go.

The door clicked closed, but Link's blue eyes burned bright in Noah's brain. She had never seen him look so intense. She had felt his gaze deep inside of her core, and it had shaken her. Noah hadn't given much thought to how deep his gaze could be since he'd been married since she had known him. His separation shouldn't have been permission for her to read more into their working dynamic, but the way he had looked at her and the time they had spent had rendered her defenseless.

She was still standing outside the door to Rhett and Link's office. She could almost see Link inside, pacing around, tugging at his hair. Or maybe he had returned to the couch and was lounging again. Noah imagined him stretched across the piece of furniture they had just shared the past couple hours on. She could see all six feet of him in her mind, right on the other side of the piece of wood a few inches from her nose. Heat began to spread through her lower body.

What was happening? It was almost ten, and Noah had been standing outside her boss's door for almost two solid minutes picturing his eyes burning through her and...more? She instinctually drew her bottom lip between her teeth, remembering how soft he had touched her face. She should just leave. She should turn around and walk out of the office. She had work tomorrow and hadn't meant to stay so late.

Just as she had made up her mind, the door clicked and swung back open revealing Link just on the other side. He had his jean jacket on now, and Noah could see the messenger bag slung over his shoulder. He didn't say anything, and Noah blinked up at him with her wide green eyes. They were so close she could almost feel the puffs of his warm, peanut butter peppermint tinged breath. At the thought, her eyes flit to his mouth and it part slightly. Her lip found its way back between her teeth.

She heard a small sound escape his throat before his big hand gripped the back of her neck and pulled her into him. She didn't have a moment to think before their lips crashed together. He was both hard and soft. Her eyes fluttered shut, one hand slipping inside his jacket against his stomach and the other grabbing onto it. She felt him pull back just enough, and when she opened her eyes she could see his were hooded as he looked down his nose at her.

Noah didn't want to think about what was happening, only that it was, and unsuspected as it might be, she had wanted this. He admitted that he had wanted this too, but it was so fragile and filled with cracks. Neither of them knew what they wanted beyond this moment in time, though.

She couldn't worry right now though, she would do that in the morning when she woke and remembered that they had kissed. For now, though, Link was staring at her with those eyes and he felt as warm as the heat that started pooling between her legs again. He must have felt it too.

In a flash, his mouth was on hers again, but this time there was nothing chaste about the way he kissed her. Noah's mouth opened without hesitation, letting him in.

She wrapped her arms around Link's neck, pulling him closer as their teeth clashed and their tongues battled for possession of each other's mouths. His hand gripping her neck slid up into her hair as his other arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her forward as he backed them into the office. He tasted like his lip balm and something that was distinctly him. Noah briefly registered the slamming of a door, muffled as all the blood rushed through her in waves.

She let out a gasp as her back bounced off the wall next to the doorway she had just been led through. Her noise was swallowed by Link's mouth, claiming hers again and again while he pressed her back into the wall, softer this time and making sure she stuck. His arm that had been around her waist had pulled back and Noah felt a warm hand pressed against the bare skin of her right hip bone, fabric pushed aside and fingertips molding her flesh between smooth pads.

She pushed up onto her toes, desperately searching for more. Link gave it to her when his hand slid down around her ass and hitched her further up the wall, effectively lifting her toes off the ground. Noah hitched her legs around Link's upper thighs as he pulled her even higher and perched her on his hips. Her hands pushed under the denim of his jacket, but the messenger bag slung across his shoulders wouldn't let her push it down his arms so she resented and found his hair. His stubble burned its way across her cheek down to her jawbone.

Noah's eyes were heavy as her head fell back to rest on the wall as Link found the sensitive spot on her throat, just under the jaw he had just been planting open mouth kisses. He was hard against her thigh and she nearly clawed at his back as she held him closer as he sucked on the spot he had now realized made her helpless. She was breathy and desperate. She hadn't been touched like this in months, and the heat between them had been burning for a while.

Somewhere behind his back Link heard his phone vibrate, and Noah held his head in place by his hair as he bit down onto the soft skin of her neck. She growled, actually growled, and Link smiled against the little purple spot he had left on her sun-kissed skin. His head was tugged back and she took control kissing him again, her tongue demanding entrance. He moaned when she slipped her tongue back into his mouth.

It was unreal, kissing Noah. Her candy scent was overwhelming his senses and she tasted like sugar and mint. Her hand slid to his cheek and he instinctively leaned his head into her warm palm. Their kissing becoming less frantic and Link focused more on the way her mouth moved against his, soft and insistent. He ached between his thighs, he was so hard and he knew she could feel him. She didn't seem to mind at all.

He could stand here and kiss her all night. His head felt like it was floating and he couldn't even remember why he had stayed away from her this whole time. He couldn't worry about that right now. He would figure this thing out later. Right now, he could only focus on Noah's small frame hanging off his hips. They were slowly kissing now, almost lazily exploring one another's mouths.

Link hadn't felt an intimate touch in too long. He missed it, and he missed feeling wanted. He missed _wanting._ Behind him, from the desk, he could hear his phone start to ring out again. He breathed out of his nose, hands sliding up into her hair and gently pulling her head back, following it with his own before pulling himself off of her.

"I have to," he kissed her again, her small fingers scraping against his neck, "have to answer."

All she managed was a small "hm" mumbled into his mouth.

It took everything in him to stop tasting her, and it took even more for him to unhook her from his body and place her feet back on the floor. He kissed her once more, deeply, before they stood against one another, forehead to forehead.

"Get your phone," she whispered.

"What just happened?" He responded.

Noah shook her head, "I don't know, but it's ringing again."

Link finally detached from her completely but didn't move toward his phone. Instead, he opted to stare at Noah, staring back at him. Her lips were swollen from his kisses and her jaw was pink from his stubble. Her chest was moving up and down, up and down, and she looked incredible and wild. He was so hard it hurt, and with that, he turned away from her to adjust himself and check his phone.

"Hey Link," she called out as he saw Christy had sent him a text message after he had missed both of her calls. He turned back to her, wanting to cross the room and latch onto her again but staying rooted to his spot. She continued, "friends?"

Link's brows shot up over his glasses, "what do you think, crazy girl?"

She only managed a small smile before turning away and leaving, both of them having no idea what their next step would be...

 **FINALLY! Honestly, I've** **had this scene written since the beginning. It's the scene that inspired** **this entire story. What do you think? First kiss, what happens now? They've** **already got some suspicious people** **around them and like Link said, he's a mess! Share your thoughts in the comments! Follow if you liked the** **makeout session! Than, everyone,ryone that has voted or commented so far, I** **appreciate you!**


	8. The Start of Somethin'

**Hey guys, thanks for reading! Please make sure to drop a comment if you like the story. I love knowing other people find joy from my work :)**

 ***Chapter song: Saturday Sun- Vance Joy***

Noah picked her way through the clothing racks of American Thrift, looking for old ratty tee shirts and other odds and ends they might add to the wardrobe back at the office. She had the company credit card tucked into her bag, and she had the crews sizes virtually memorized. Rhett and Link wore most of their own clothing during shoots, but they had an ample supply of additional clothing for almost every occasion.

Her phone beeped with a text notification.

 _L- '10:50am- You're not here this morning. Everything okay?'_

Noah smiled and felt the heat flare up in her cheeks.

 _N- '10:52am- I'm fine, and you're late ;)'_

It didn't take long for him to respond. She could almost see him sitting at his desk, leaning over his doc manager and schedule for the day, phone face up while he tried to pretend in front of Rhett that he wasn't at all interested in the text exchange.

 _L- '10:54am- Both of those things are true ;)'_

 _N- '10:56am- I wish you could see how hard I'm rolling my eyes right now.'_

 _L- '10:58am- I wish I could just see you, but again...you're not here.'_

 _N- '11:01am- I'm at the thrift on Magnolia shopping for wardrobe. I'll be back after lunch.'_

When her phone didn't beep out a reply, Noah went back to her sorting.

It had been just under a week since she had been perched on Link's hips and pinned to the wall of his office. Even though they hadn't talked about it yet, there was a definite chemistry building between the two that had evolved since their impromptu make-out session. Even though they hadn't locked lips again, they had both been more open with flirting. When he thought no one else was looking, Noah had caught him staring at her, the corner of his mouth pulled up and an eyebrow arching perfectly over the dark frame of his glasses when he knew he had been caught.

There seemed to be some hesitancy at times, but Noah thought she knew why. On her end, she was terrified of getting hurt. If she let this little crush develop beyond what it was, an insane attraction, then she was putting herself at risk for heartbreak again. Her ex had really crushed her and Link was in no position to commit to her. It wasn't fair to him either.

He had so much going on in his life, and adding another relationship to it was not on the table. Noah thought it might actually be selfish of her to even wonder what it would be like to be with Link. She had often found herself wondering what he looked like when he was sleeping peacefully, or how a lazy Sunday morning in bed might be spent with him. How his hands might feel running over her naked skin.

Noah jumped when she accidentally knocked into a shelf and an old metal pitcher tipped over. Looking around quickly, Noah righted the toppled piece and shook those images out of her head.

Link was her boss, and he was still living with Christy, set on (maybe) making it work, and if they developed a relationship he was going to risk more than she could even imagine.

Her phone finally rang out again.

 _L- '11:36am- Almost there, be ready to go in 5.'_

Noah stared at her phone longer than should have been appropriate. He was, what? He was coming to pick her up? What about her car? What about the cart of clothing she had found? Noah glanced around the thrift shop before glancing back at her cart, before back at her phone, and around the store once more before finally pushing the cart to the front of the store and starting the check out process.

Sure enough, when she walked out the doors carrying three large shopping bags, Link was leaning against his car. She appreciated the way he looked so casual in his jean jacket, dark wash pants disappearing into his boots, and hair effortlessly fluffed into perfection. As soon as he saw her he hopped off the hood and bound over to her, smiling while taking two of the bags from her hands.

"Hey," he grinned.

"Hey," Noah replied, following him to the back of his car while he popped the trunk. "Just in the neighborhood?" She sarcastically suggested.

Link closed the trunk after the bags were placed inside, and walked around to open her car door. "I needed a coffee. Starbuck's is right up the street."

Noah rolled her eyes, "is that what you told Rhett?"

Link didn't reply, but the twinkle in his eye as he shut the door and moved around to get behind the driver's side let her know that she was right. She didn't know when they had started sneaking around to hang out, but something about him picking her up without any warning made her blood pump faster.

"So," he said as he slid his seatbelt across his chest and clicked it into place. "How's your mornin'?"

Noah pulled her own seatbelt on as he began pulling out of his spot, heading toward the exit. "It's been a morning, but not bad. Better now."

The corner of Link's mouth pulled up and he glanced her way for a second before checking to make sure no other cars were coming and pulling out in the direction of his favorite coffee shop.

"How's yours?" She pressed, "you were pretty late this morning."

"Mm, Lincoln wasn't feelin' good so he stayed home from school. Christy had some runnin' to do so I stayed home with him."

Noah noticed how he bristled just a little at the mention of Christy.

"Lincoln gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, I think so. Just a little fever. If he ain't feeling better tomorrow she'll get him into the doctor."

"That's good though. Hopefully he's back at it soon."

They continued chatting about their days for the rest of the ride, through ordering their coffee, and finally settled into a corner spot to enjoy the caffeine buzzes they were sure to catch. They had each gotten a protein box for lunch, and Link had ordered a couple cookies too. Noah happily crunched a cucumber dipped in peanut sauce.

"What're you plannin' over break?" Link asked, tipping back his Americano.

They were filming the last few episodes of Season 10 over the next week, spending about two weeks editing and tying up all loose ends in preparation for Season 11, then they were off for two and half weeks before returning right after the New Year to start filming again.

"Um," Noah started, "I'm headed home for Christmas. My sister will be home too, and it's the first time we'll all be together for the holidays since she went away to school."

"That's great," Link said, popping a grape into his mouth. "I didn't know you had a sister."

"Yeah!" Noah exclaimed, "Hailee. She's almost 22 and in her senior year at UF. We, we kinda grew apart a little since she went away to school, you know?"

"Mm, Florida's pretty far from Pittsburgh..."

"...and California," Noah replied.

"And California," Link agreed before sipping his coffee again. "So your sister is at UF, and you graduated from Pittsburgh University..."

"University of Pittsburgh..."

"Sorry, the University of Pittsburgh. You graduated just under two years ago and she's a senior. Any reason you didn't move away to go to school?"

Link saw the way her beautiful green eyes went a little misty as she suddenly turned them away from his. He was suddenly very aware that he didn't know that much about her, and that she had always let him talk when they were together.

"Did I say something wrong?" He tried, reaching out across the table and taking her hand before he could even think about what he was doing.

She shook her head, "No! No, I'm sorry. I just," she paused and took a breath. "Our Dad got really sick when I was a senior in high school. He, um, he died a few months after graduation."

Link stroked her palm with his thumb, "I'm sorry."

"Thanks," she smiled, her eyes clearing back up. "It sucked, but after that, I couldn't leave my Mom. She needed my help with Hailee so I took a year off before I went back. She took off right after high school though, and my Mom met her current husband, Todd. He's okay but he's..."

"He's not your Dad?" Link offered.

He had remembered when his Mom had remarried for the first time. Even now, with Lewis, they had been married the better part of 20 years and he still didn't call Lewis his step-dad.

"Yeah. He's good to her, and it was because of him I finally felt like I could leave her, but I just miss my dad sometimes is all. I don't regret moving though."

Link wanted to know everything about her, but he knew their time was limited right now.

"You happy out here in L.A.?" He asked, acutely aware that his hand was still holding hers.

She pressed her hand into his, fingers nudging up into his palm.

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't", she replied. Her eyes flicked down to his lips, his hands, and then finally back up to his face. That feeling hit him in his lower abdomen again; that spring coiling sensation he had felt that night he had opened his office door and found her standing there peering up at him.

Noah saw that look in his eyes. She remembered it the day she had almost crawled across the table, and then when he had looked at her that night they had made out. The same look existed. She needed to break the tension.

"What are you doing for Christmas?" She tried, effectively relaxing back in her seat.

He pushed out a breath before leaning back, releasing her hand, and going back to work on his pb&j protein box. He and Christy had talked about it, and they had both decided that going home together was best for the kids, but he'd be staying at a hotel in Lillington and she would be staying with her parents. The kids would stay with Christy, and they would all split their time together between both of their families like usual. He explained as much to Noah.

"And you're okay?" She queried, polishing off her last piece of cucumber.

Link shrugged, "I gotta be."

"And the kids?" Noah pushed.

Link actually laughed before, "ya know, if I didn't know any better I'd think they prefer it when Christy and I ain't around at the same time."

"Oh?"

Link popped another grape in his mouth, his jaw popping as he chewed it with all the veracity that Rhett complained about. Noah didn't actually find it that off-putting.

"Mm, they, they hear us fightin' sometimes. I swear, they look miserable sittin' around the dinner table. Only one smilin' in that damn house anymore is Lando."

"He's such a cute kid," Noah noted, remembering when she had met him on set how charming the boy had been.

Link's mouth pulled into a grin, "he's a good kid, is what he is. Don't deserve his life bein' turned all upside down." The grin faded away.

"Hey, you and Christy are still gonna be great parents, even if, if..." Noah searched for the right words.

"Even if we ain't great husband and wife?" Link offered.

Noah visibly winced but offered a slim shoulder in a small shrug. "Well, I wasn't gonna say that, but..."

Link smiled again, "it's okay! You can say whatever you want. Swear I don't mind!"

Noah let his words dance around in her brain. Outward she tried, "whatever I want?"

Link's right brow danced above the frames of his glasses for just a moment and the corner of his lip quirked up into a smirk. His blue eyes sparkled with mischief.

She took that as her confirmation to continue. They had to talk about it eventually...

"You taste like your lip balm," his brow stuck in place, she continued, "and I like it."

Link's breath caught in his throat and heat roared to life throughout his entire body. She was looking at him now with those eyes, bigger and greener than any he'd ever seen before. Her pearly teeth were sunk into the soft pink of her bottom lip, and Link could see the tiny gap between the two front ones peeking out in a way that made him want to lick his way across it. He didn't really know how this worked, but he'd try.

"Y-You taste like sugar and smell like candy. I," Link blinked, "I like it too."

Her bottom lip popped out from between her teeth and her cheeks dimpled in response.

"I didn't really, I don't know, I guess I didn't expect kissing you to be so good, you know?"

"Hey!" Link sat back, playfully offended, "you sayin' I don't look like the kinda guy that knows his way around a woman?"

Noah shrugged that pretty little shoulder of hers again, "I'm saying that you aren't _that_ bad..."

Link launched a grape across the table and both started a laugh that garnered them attention from some nearby patrons. One of which perked up and leaned back to talk to her friends before pointing in the direction of the table. In a matter of minutes, a girl approached, and Link was thanking her for being her mythical best while chatting about a recent episode.

Noah had seen him and Rhett get recognized in public. It didn't happen nearly as much as people thought it did, but it was always nice when they got to meet a beast in person. Rhett and Link truly loved their fans. When the girl turned to her and asked for a hug, Noah almost toppled right over. She had never, _never_ been approached by a fan other than at Vid-Con, and even then the senior crew members had garnered more of the attention. Noah had gladly hugged the girl, who had smiled at both of them, asked for a picture, and thanked them once again before heading back to her own table.

The two fell back into the comfortable conversation about how grateful they both were for the fans that adored both Rhett and Link. Link mentioned how he'd never get used to the Beasts approaching him and how grateful he was, and Noah talked about how exciting and weird it had been for her to be recognized. They didn't return to their flirty banter, but underneath the table, Noah's foot had bumped into Link's and neither of them had made a move to break the contact.

Before they both knew it, it was closing in on 1:00, Rhett was calling Link, and Noah had gotten a text from Lizzie telling her that they had scheduled a wrap-up meeting to start at 2. Begrudgingly they both threw away their trash, waved one last time at the Mythical Beast that had come to say hi, and made their way back to his car. Link opened her door again, lingering before he closed it, and the drive back to the parking lot so she could pick her own car up was spent in a comfortable silence. At one point, Noah found herself leaning into Link's arm, and his open hand sneaked itself onto her leg.

He pulled into the empty spot next to Noah's civic, keeping the engine running as she reached to unbuckle her seatbelt. She didn't even hear his unclick.

"Thanks for..MMPH!"

Link's mouth found hers in a bruising kiss. He had one large hand on either side of her face, and he had pulled her forward to meet him halfway over the center console. Noah's hands immediately flew to his forearms, her mouth opening when his tongue slid across her lower lip and her fingers gripping at the denim covering his skin like she might fall if she let go.

They both shifted in their seats, turning toward one another enough to allow the kiss to deepen. Noah's tongue slid across Links as their mouths slanted against one another's, and he blew out a stream of air from his nose. Link's left hand slid down to her neck, her shoulder, her back. Noah's laced behind his neck, and with one last slide of their tongues and a few more softer pecks Link wrapped his arms around her and pulled her (a little awkwardly over the console) into his chest.

The hug didn't last nearly long enough, but they both were needed back at the office. When he finally released her and she pulled back enough to look at him, his eyes were closed and his lips were swollen from her kisses. With the light pink ghosting his cheeks, Noah thought he looked more boyish than she had ever seen him before. When he opened his eyes, and the blue shone brighter than the California sky, she smiled and leaned forward to place one more chaste kiss against his mouth.

"I'll see you back at the office," she whispered.

He only nodded, kissing her palm before she hopped out of his car and practically bounced over to her own. Link couldn't take his eyes off of her. This was so dangerous, he knew that. He didn't mean for any of this to happen. He hadn't even meant to kiss her just now, but it was like being with her he lost all sense of what was right and what wasn't.

When he had gotten to the office this morning and she wasn't at her desk, his heart had actually stopped for a minute. His stomach had twisted and he tried to ignore it but he couldn't. Instead, he had missed her so much that he had texted her. When he found out where she had gone, he made up the excuse of needing a coffee and before he knew it she was in his car and his heart was full again.

Since that night in his office, Link could barely stop thinking about how it had felt to hold her against him. Sometimes he let himself think about what would have happened if his phone hadn't interrupted them, and then he would make himself stop when that little bit of anxiety trickled down his spine.

There was no denying that he was attracted to Noah, and it seemed pretty obvious that she was attracted to him too. That was fine. He had accepted that there was a tension starting to tighten between them. It was the other stuff, the more emotional pieces that had him worried. He had loved Christy for so long, he had never thought it even an option to develop feelings for someone else and now that he realized he might be, the situation surrounding them was enough to knock the wind out of his lungs.

As we weaved through traffic on his way back to the office, Link couldn't stop thinking about his future. He couldn't keep walking this thin line between making his marriage work and making Noah work. On the one hand, if he could learn to forgive Christy, his kids wouldn't have to learn what it was like to split their time between two houses.

Christy had asked him the other day if he wanted to try therapy with her. He had scoffed at the idea, but when he had reflected later he wondered if that wasn't because he was scared that therapy would actually work. He should be excited about that outcome, but something in him said no.

They'd had problems for a long time. They went through a sexless year once, before deciding to have Lando out of desperation. There was a time when Link had begged Christy to do whatever it took to keep them together. They had stayed married, but for what seemed like years now they had been coasting through. Link thought that maybe, just maybe, Christy's infidelity wasn't much of a surprise and that it had been the catalyst they needed to finally accept that this could really be it. Maybe he didn't _want_ something to come along and help them make it work.

Even if that was the case, what the Hell was he doing going on ahead and getting attached to a girl 10 years younger than him that he also happened to employ? If he was gonna break it off with Christy, really break it off, he needed to stay single while they figured out what they would do with their kids. Christy couldn't take them. He wouldn't let her.

These were the thoughts that plagued him as he pulled into the back lot of the studio. Noah's car was already parked and he knew she was inside. His lips quirked into a smile without even trying. He would figure this out. He would. He had to.


	9. Coming Undone

WARNING: Adult themes, y'all. There's your warning, so read on! Hopefully, that doesn't deter you from reading!

Link sat up with a start, eyes flying open as he blinked into the soft grey of the early morning sun just beginning to rise. His chest rose and fell as he fought to catch his breath, and when he reached up to run a hand over his stubbled face he found that his skin had a thin sheen of sweat that had formed. Everything was eerily quiet, and he knew the rest of the Neal family was still tucked away in bed which was quite fortunate at the moment.

Checking the time he saw that it was just barely 5:30. No one else would need to be awake for another hour, at least. He had time to process what had just happened, and boy did he need to process this.

Link groaned as he began to shift on the couch, trying to untangle the blankets from his legs. He grimaced as the sticky wet fabric of his pajama pants reminded him why he had startled awake in the first place. He hadn't had a dream that ended like that since he was a teenager. Sure, he had dreamt about this celebrity or that one, but he'd never cum in his damn pants like this!

He groaned again, standing up and hobble walking toward the door. He was embarrassed, and he was angry, but most of all he was more confused than he had ever been before. As he crept slowly down the hall toward the guest bathroom, he wondered how he was supposed even go to work today without feeling like hiding away. Had it really been so long that he was having sex dreams again?

It had been so vivid, so real.

As he stripped himself of his dirty clothes and turned the water to the hottest setting, Link swore that he could taste her on his tongue. He could smell her in the steam that had started filling his bathroom, a sweet mixture of candy and essential oils. When he tipped his head back under the stream, closing his eyes, her green ones filled his vision as he remembered with perfect clarity the dream that had made him revert back to his days of dirty sheets.

She was stunning, and as Link dragged his bar of soap across his skin, he could imagine her smaller hand running along in its place like it had in his sleep. Goosebumps prickled along where the suds slicked and Link shivered as he remembered the things they had done. The heat began to flood to his groin, and when the visions of the little red head bouncing on top of him flashed before him his fingers slowly started to dance down the dark line of hair spackling his lower abdomen.

Between the heat of the shower and the heat in his head, Link was so hard it hurt. His body was buzzing, stuck between coming down from the orgasm he had already experienced and boiling with lust from his consciously arousing thoughts. His lips parted just enough to let out a small sound in tandem with his fingers skimming over his length.

He shouldn't let himself do this, but fuck if it didn't feel good. He could just imagine what it might really feel like. What it might taste like. Link's eyes fluttered shut as his fingers closed around the base of his shaft...

...then he effectively yelped when three sharp knocks sounded on the other side of the door, followed immediately by it cracking open and Christy's head poking in. She caught the tail end of his frantic jump.

"Link?" She called sleepily, "you okay?"

"Jesus, I'm, what?" Link disorientingly reached for the bar of soap he had dropped in his frenzied attempt to right himself lest he be caught in a position he'd rather not be caught in.

"Sorry for scaring you baby," Christy rubbed her heavy lidded eyes.

Link stared at the woman through the foggy glass of the shower door separating the two of them. He wasn't even sure she had caught that she had called him baby. "Why you in here?"

"Why you up so early?" She countered, leaning down to pick up his discarded clothes.

"Don't!" He started, but it was too late. Christy had seen the stain on his briefs.

"Oh," is all she managed.

Link felt his whole body flame with embarrassment, but there was something else there too. Guilt, maybe? Guilt because she had just caught him literally with his hands down his pants and seen the remnants of a dirty dream that wasn't about her? Link didn't know, but the anger was starting to bubble back up.

"Get out," he bit.

He expected her to comply, but instead he saw her roll her shoulders back and set her jaw.

"No."

"Christy I just want to finish up and..."

"Looks like you already did," she managed, albeit a little timidly, and held up the soiled piece of cloth.

He didn't say a word, instead he turned away from her. He felt ashamed, he really did. It had been bad enough for him this morning but now with Christy holding onto the evidence of his dream about Noah, Link just wanted to crawl in a hole and hide away.

"Who'd you dream about?" Christy took a step closer. He could see her in his peripheral as he started lathering his hair with shampoo. He ignored her question.

"Who'd you dream about, huh?" She tried again.

Link could hear how loaded her question was. "Christy..."

"No, Link. I asked you a question and I wanna hear the answer."

She had him cornered. He would be willing to bet that she had waited a long time for a moment like this. "It doesn't matt..."

"It does matter!" His clothes bounced off the glass of the shower. "You haven't touched me in over six months. You're eatin' lunch with a woman every day at work. Who'd you fucking dream about Link?"

He swallowed, Adam's apple bobbing. He had no idea that she had any idea who he was spending his time with at work, and now that he knew, he wasn't sure if he felt bad for it or even. Regardless, after catching him, he couldn't fathom fighting with her right now.

"Please," he tried softer this time, "leave it alone. I, I don't wanna fight with you Chris..."

He didn't even see her strip off her clothes. He didn't see her move toward the shower, and he only caught on that she was joining him when the shower door slid open and her slender frame slipped inside.

"What're you..."

Christy slammed her mouth against his, her naked body sliding against his. His initial reaction was to tense, but his morning had been such a whirlwind that when one of her hands snaked down to palm his cock he stood immediately at a tension and his knees almost buckled beneath him. He hadn't been touched by anyone but himself in so long. When Christy's hand started pumping he had to lean onto the wall to steady or he'd have taken them both down to the ground.

Fuck. So good. So...

Christy's mouth found his neck easily, sucking hard on his pulse point as she continued her ministrations, hands expertly working him the way she knew he liked.

"I miss you," she whispered in his ear.

Christy was tall, just 4 inches shy of his solid 6 foot frame. She easily nestled into the crook where his shoulder met his neck as her hand continued to pump him closer to climax. Noah was nowhere near his height, and he had to bend to meet her much smaller frame whenever they hugged. No doubt he would've needed to bow forward to allow her access to his neck.

Noah. There she was again, dancing around in his head. His dream came crashing down around him again. He tasted her on his tongue all over again, and the smell of her sugary sweet skin evaded his senses. With his eyes closed he could almost imagine it was her hand on him. God he knew he was wrong for this. He knew he was so, so wrong and fuck was he close too.

Link's head fell back to the wall, shallow breaths of air escaping from between his lips. A groan slipped out and Christy twisted her hand in a way that made the bottom of Link's spine tingle and his balls tighten with anticipation. He was going to cum. He was going to cum.

"I'm, I'm," he babbled, giving himself over completely to the sensation.

"Please baby," Christy whispered. Christy whispered.

Link's eyes flew open. The dream was shattered. He was back in his shower, in his house, with Christy jerking him off for the first time in six months. Six months because she had cheated on him. Six months because he couldn't forgive her. Six months because he had started falling for someone else...

He lost it.

"What's wrong?" Christy's blue eyes peered up at him.

'Everything' Link thought, but instead the anxiety trickled down his spine, icy cold regardless of the heat of the water beating down on his skin, and gripped his tongue. He tore himself away from the wall, flinging open the shower and quickly getting out.

"Link!" Christy called, but he was out the door, stark naked and dripping wet.

His lungs had started to fail him. By the time he made it to his office, they were burning with the lack of oxygen. Link quickly locked the door behind him before collapsing to the floor. He was so fucked up. Christy was his wife. They'd been married damn near 15 years and he had just imagined she was another woman while she gave him a hand job; the first intimate thing they had even done in half a year. They had kids together, they had built a life and they had planned to grow old and grey.

Fifteen years and when he closed his eyes, it wasn't blonde hair and blue eyes he saw, instead he was lost in a sea of green eyes and strawberry locks. He couldn't do this. He couldn't keep pretending like things might be okay with Christy. He couldn't pretend that he might work it out or be able to move on, and most of all he couldn't keep fighting these feelings that had developed for Noah.

It was more than he had thought it was, it had to be. Link couldn't keep denying that the girl had snaked her way into his heart. He was beyond attracted to her. The way he felt was unlike anything he'd ever felt before, even when he'd first met Christy. It hadn't been immediate with Noah, or maybe it had and he had stifled that connection for so long because of his marriage. He thought he might even be in...

No, don't even think that.

Link closed his eyes and started the breathing techniques he had become better at in the past few months. His life was a mess, and if the panic attack he was having in the middle of the floor was any indication, he needed to figure it all out before it killed him. He needed to make some decisions, confess his sins, and figure out what he was going to do.

But first, he needed to go to work.

How can I even face her after this?

Link didn't even glance in the direction of the writer's corner when he walked in. He had seen Noah's car in the parking lot, and had immediately felt all the emotions he had felt a few hours earlier when his panic had grabbed hold and not let go. He couldn't see her right now. There was no way that he was ready for that.

Instead, he kept his head down low and made a line right for the office he shared with Rhett. The big man was already typing away furiously on his laptop when Link slammed the door a little too loudly.

"Gonna break it if you keep slammin' it like that," Rhett glanced up at him as he made to drop his bag and plop onto his desk chair. "You alright man? You look rough."

Link huffed in frustration, swiveling in his desk chair to face the taller man. Rhett's eyebrows had drawn down over his eyes in concern for his friend.

"I, I had another one of those panic attacks." Rhett bristled so Link continued. "Not as bad as the first one, but, but man, I thought for a minute I might die from it."

"What happened? How'd you get so worked up?" The bigger man's face was creased with worry.

This is the part that Link wasn't looking forward to. He didn't know why this was so difficult for him to talk about, maybe because he was so embarrassed, or ashamed, or maybe because he was worried about how Rhett would react to Link being involved with someone who works for them. Either way, it took him a moment to steady his breathing before he decided to rip the band-aid off.

"I had a, a naughty dream last night..."

"How naughty we talkin'?" Rhett interrupted, "'cuz if you're breakin' down over it then it must really be someth'n."

"Can you just shut up? I, I freaked out 'cuz it was about Noah, man. It was, it was real Rhett. I could taste her." Rhett's look of concern shifted to something else, but Link pushed on. He didn't like to get too explicit with anyone about his private life but this was something he really needed to put out there.

"Christy came in while I was showerin'. She, uh, she found the...stain," Link winced at the memory." She asked who I was dreamin' 'bout, and I told her I didn't wanna fight. She, she got mad, but then she got in the shower with me and she touched me. You know what I did?"

Rhett shook his head, "I don't, I-I really don't, buddyroll."

"Don't you give me that 'I told ya so' talk after I say it or I'm leavin'," Link warned, jabbing a finger in the taller man's direction to emphasize his point. When Rhett held up his hands in surrender, Link finally caved. "I closed my eyes and I pretended it was her, man. Not her, her. But her, her."

"Let me make sure I follow," Rhett said, eyes darting around before landing back on him. "You had a wet dream about a girl you say you got nothin' goin' on with, and then when your wife jerked you off in the shower you pretended she was that same girl? That same girl you ain't got any feelings for? That sound about right?"

"Why you gotta make it sound so, so," Link couldn't think of the word. Wrong? It was wrong. Dirty? It was dirty.

"So what, Link? That's what happened," Rhett pushed.

"Yeah, I guess that's what happened. I, I got somethin' else to say too," Link pulled his eyes away from Rhett's glare. He briefly wondered if he could disappear if he wished for it enough.

"If you tell me you'n Noah been screwin'..."

"We ain't been screwin' Rhett, dang." Link cut him off, "if we had, I wouldn't be dreamin' like I did. We-we been kissin' though," he mumbled.

Rhett was quiet for such a long moment, Link thought he might not have heard him. That was until the big man let out a low whistle before, "you could'a told me. I could'a been here, brother."

Link looked back at his best friend of 30 years. He hadn't meant to keep any secrets from Rhett. He had never kept secrets from him before, and he didn't intend to do so again, which is what he told the bearded man.

"You scared I'd be pissed?" Rhett's usually expressionless face was a vast pool of emotions. Link could see the hurt in his eyes, the smug satisfaction he had been right, and something else Link couldn't quite pinpoint.

"I don't know what I was scared of, honest." Link shrugged, "maybe I didn't want you treatin' Noah any different..."

"Woah, woah, wait a minute," Rhett held up a hand to stop Link from going on. "What you mean you didn't want me treatin' her any different? Different how?"

"You been givin' her the cold shoulder since we started hangin' out, man. If, If you knew," Link paused, shaking his head.

"I got nothin' against Noah, Link..."

"...Could'a fooled me..."

"...hey, don't look at me like that man, I said I got nothin' against the girl and I mean it. What I got somethin' against is you keepin' shit from me like I ain't known you for over thirty years. I knew you were lyin', Link."

He stared at Rhett, a heat flaring up his neck. "I'm sorry, bo. You're right. I just, I-I'm..."

"You're a mess."

Rhett's face was soft when he said it, but his eyes were hard; a look that Link had come to relate to Rhett being as authentic as he could while still being upset.

"That's what I told Noah."

Rhett seemed to study Link for a long time, eyes raking over the dark haired man looking for any sign that he wasn't okay or that he'd break down again. When he was sure that Link could be trusted to hold it together, he finally spoke up.

"You wanna know what I think?"

"That's why I'm tryin' to talk to you. I, I need you, man."

"Listen, brother, you know how I feel about what Christy did to you," Link's face scrunched, but Rhett pushed on. "But you, you've been staying there and talkin' 'bout workin' it out. I, don't look at me like that Link, I told you that somethin' like this was gonna happen. I didn't say that because I wanted to have an 'I told ya so' moment, I said it because I didn't wanna see you hurt, man. I, you're gonna get yourself into somethin' you can't get out of. I don't wanna see you fall apart."

Link swallowed hard, blowing air through his nose and trying his best to make sure Rhett wouldn't see the way he was shaking.

"What do I do, Rhett? How do I," Link shook his head, mind wandering. "Am I doin' the wrong thing?"

"You ain't even done nothin' yet," Rhett started before noticing the way Link's neck flushed and how he seemed to fidget in his seat. "But you need to."

"Ya know, Christy asked if I wanted to try therapy."

Rhett arched a brow, "and?"

Link pressed a finger into his temple, trying to stifle the headache he knew was right on the cusp of breaking through.

"And I don't know, man. I, I don't think I wanna do it."

"You know what I'm gonna ask," Rhett leaned forward, arms resting on his knees.

"I mean," Link shrugged before he finally admit, "I think, maybe, I'm scared it'll work and I don't want it to."

"'Cuz you're kissin' other women?"

"Not women," Link defended, "one woman, and no, that ain't why. You know we been havin' problems for a long time."

"How'd it feel?" Rhett pushed him even further. Link hated being pushed, and Rhett was best at it.

"How'd what feel, Rhett?"

"Kissin' another woman. You said it yourself, y'all been havin' issues and her cheatin' sure ain't gonna help matters."

"It felt, it felt...good." Link thought back to the day in his office, ignoring the cheating comment, and then thinking again to almost a week ago." It was better than good. It was, it was incredible."

"She make you happy?"

All Link could manage was a small smile as he thought about the months he had spent with Noah. Yeah, she definitely made him happy. Confused, overwhelmed, and sometimes a little out of control, sure, but happy too.

"You talk to Noah 'bout any of this?" Rhett caught on.

"Any of this?" Link gestured around him, smile fading, "this is all developin' today, man..."

"Today?" Rhett cut him off, "buddyroll, you might be talkin' to me about it today but you been thinkin' about it a lot longer. You been head over heels for the girl for months, man."

Rhett was right, about everything, and Link hated that. Rhett was always right about most things, and Link just needed him to be wrong sometimes. Especially about something like this, but he wasn't. He hadn't been willing to admit it any earlier. Admitting it made it real. It was already real, Link reminded himself.

"Tell me what to do, brother," Link begged, "please..."

"Look," Rhett stood, stretching his long limbs over his head. "You need to talk to Noah. You need to tell her..."

"...she knows I like her..."

"...she know you love her?"

Every muscle in Link's body stiffened and his mouth filled with sawdust. When did this become love? When did it become okay for him to fall in love with someone? Was he in love? He had certainly never felt this way about anyone before, not even Christy. Noah had something he had waited a lifetime for, and he hadn't even known it was missing from his life to begin with.

"I'm takin' that as a no..."

"I never said I loved...

"Come on, man, you don't get to know someone for as long as I've known you 'n not pick up on some stuff. You need to talk to her."

"I don't know what I'm gonna do yet," Link stood too, knowing they had a writer's meeting to get to. "What about my kids, man? I-I can't lose 'em. What if Christy takes, and then I never see, and-and..." Link's thoughts were beginning to race.

Rhett's big hands on his shoulders grounded him. Link felt his spine run could again, but looking up into the eyes of the bearded man brought him back.

"You're gonna kill yourself if you don't stop." Link swallowed hard as Rhett continued, "Christy can't take the kids..."

"She could if she made this all seem like my fault..."

"It ain't your fault Link, it ain't your fault."

It wasn't that the two friends had never shared an intimate moment or held onto one another, they did, but they were rare. They expressed their love for one another in supportive ways and grand gestures, but right now Rhett saw the way Link's face twisted in pain. He pulled the shorter man into his chest, holding him tight when he felt his shoulders start to tremble.

"It ain't your fault," Rhett repeated. "We'll figure this out..."

"I'm sorry," Link pulled back, sniffling and wiping at his eyes. "F-for not tellin' you I kissed Noah and-and I'm sorry I'm fallin' apart, man. I just, this is so hard."

"No more keepin' things from me. I'm your best friend. I'm here to help you."

Link nodded, turning to follow Rhett.

"I don't know if I can face her yet..."

"Then don't," Rhett stopped him before he walked out the door. "Leave, man. Go somewhere else. I'll cover for you. We ain't shootin' today anyway."

He didn't have to tell him twice. Link agreed that he needed some time away and with one more genuine 'thank you' he slipped down the hall, keeping his eyes ahead, and out the back door without so much as a word to anyone else. Driving toward Venice Beach he felt his phone vibrate, but it wasn't until 30 minutes later after his ass was planted in the sand that he pulled it out.

N-'11:04am- Hey, missed you this morning. Rhett said you had to leave. everything okay?'

Rhett told him that he should talk to her, but what would he say? That he dreamed about fucking her and then pretended his wife was her? That he wanted to leave Christy and be with her? That he loved her? That everything was a big damn mess and he needed some space to think it all through?

He stared at his phone for too long before finally clicking it off and putting it away. He would talk to her, but not today, not right now. Link stared out at the waves, choppy on this late November day. He wondered what would happen when he started making more progressive decisions about his own life...


	10. Stay

**WARNING: Adult themes...so there's that. Make sure you leave a comment if you want to see what happens next ;)**

Christy sat with Jessie and her oldest, Lily, at a corner table set up as a part of the celebration for the wrap of Season 10 of Good Mythical Morning. She had debated coming at all, but it was important for the kids to be here for their dad and Uncle Rhett. She knew that everyone was aware of what she had done, but no one had seemed to treat her any differently and any awkwardness she had felt when she arrived had disappeared after the first hour or so.

She glanced around the room wistfully, taking note that her youngest was with Jessie's youngest near Alex, laughing about something ridiculous she assumed. She had to look a little longer to find Lincoln, but she did; he had his Nintendo Switch and was tucked into a corner with Locke and a bowl of kettle chips. She frowned, wishing her eldest son would stop playing so many video games, but liking that he was at least interacting with another person while playing said games.

 _"Noah, over here!"_

Christy's head whipped around, her blonde hair fanning out briefly and her eyes finding a woman she had never met approaching a group of people she almost recognized. _Noah_.

Christy's eyes raked down to the girl's toes before traveling back up to the little strawberry blonde messy buns tied at the nape of her slender neck. She was short, only a couple inches taller than Jessie if that. She was young, Christy wouldn't put her older than her mid 20's, and her body was tight, compact, and loaded with subtle curves that she had never had.

She remembered the way Link's eyes has sparkled when he had met a Noah for brunch once. This had to be the same girl; after all, how many women had Christy met named Noah? She received confirmation of her suspicion when her husband walked between the two and his eyes lingered far too long on the bubbly redhead, only to have her turn her (striking) green eyes to him as he passed.

Christy felt nauseous. She was beautiful with her little denim shorts and oversized cardigan, knit socks pulled over her knee and doc martens laced tight to her calf. Her style was cool and relaxed, and Christy even found herself appreciating the way the clothes hung on the younger woman. That didn't excuse the way Link had looked when she had texted him, though, and the worst part about it all; she _worked_ for him.

The girl she had heard he'd been spending more time with, eating lunch with, etc., was employed by him. They saw one another every day **.** Christy had been working for months to try and earn Link's affections back, and the reason she couldn't was standing 15-feet from her because _they worked together_. He'd said he would try, but he had been steadily falling for a girl he spent infinitely more time with than her.

She was angry, but she knew better than to cause a scene right now. Glancing at the clock, she realized it was almost 8 which meant that she and Jessie would need to get the kids home soon, and the wrap-up party would become for adults only. She didn't want to leave, especially now.

Christy glanced toward the girl again, watching her walk away from the group and toward the food. Asking Lily if she was still hungry, Christy hopped out of her seat and started crossing the room...

...Noah pulled her gaze away from Link's retreating back, her stomach flipping. It had been two days since she had texted him asking if he was okay and he had never replied. When she saw him at work, he was unusually quiet, even if he did smile at her and ask her how she was.

Something had changed, and she had no idea what or if she had done or said something that had made him mad. This was exactly why she had told herself not to get attached to him. This was the reason he had told her that he was a mess, and the reason they had agreed to just stay friends. There was just a small problem with that; she _had_ gotten, at least a little, attached and when they kissed there was nothing friendly about it. Her world had flipped upside down.

If he was going to make it work with Christy, Noah had seen the blonde walk in with Link's kids awhile ago, that was fine, she would support his decision. He was torn about keeping his home together and who was she if she came between that? She just needed to hear him say it. It wasn't like him to just ghost her. She would be fine, _she would be fine_ , she just needed to talk to him so that work could go back to normal and she could stop staring at him.

Feeling suddenly like she needed to fill her empty, butterfly-filled stomach, Noah excused herself from her small group and made her way to the food they had catered in. She didn't think she wanted to stay much longer, having not been in the best mood. No one had come out and said anything to her, but Ellie had mentioned some tension in the office lately. Noah knew the comment had been directed at her. Oh well.

"There's so much food, how is anyone supposed to eat all this?"

Noah startled a little, not seeing anyone approach the table, and almost startled again when she saw the woman who had spoken. Christy Neal was casually picking around a deli tray, blue-grey eyes flitting around the table as she seemingly thought about what she wanted to eat.

"Um, I guess, yeah. We can usually take it home with us if there's anything left," Noah offered in reply.

"What would you suggest?" Christy asked, casually gesturing to the table.

Noah looked at the older woman, noting how lovely she was with her long blonde hair and round apple cheeks.

"I love the caprice salad stuffed avocados," Noah pointed toward a platter near the back, "and the kabobs are to die for. I'd recommend the yakitori sauce for dipping."

"Sounds good to me," Christy replied, plucking an avocado from the tray. "I'm Christy, by the way, Christy Neal. I don't think we've met?"

Noah knew more about Christy than she thought appropriate, but she swallowed the saliva that had gathered in her throat before, "We haven't, no. I-I'm Noah. It's nice to meet you."

"It is nice," Christy tucked a loose strand of hair back. "So tell me, Noah, what do you do here?"

Noah watched as Christy casually took a bite of a crepe she had also placed on her plate, wiping the corner of her mouth where yogurt had smeared. She felt uncomfortable like she was a specimen under a microscope. Christy _couldn't_ know anything about her and Link, right?

"I'm one of the writers here, and I help Jen with the social media. I do a lot, really."

"You're close with your co-workers then? I saw you talking with some of them earlier," Christy picked up a kabob before offering one to Noah.

Noah held her plate out, accepting the stick. "I guess I am, yeah. I have friends here."

"Are you close with Rhett and Link, too?"

Noah paused, shoving a strawberry in her mouth to buy her time. This was a casual conversation, but Noah couldn't help but feel like maybe it wasn't.

"I would say," Noah started around the berry in her mouth, "they're friends with everyone in the office. That's kind of one of the perks of working here, you now?"

Christy mumbled a 'Mhmm' before she plastered on another smile, "Hey! Have you met my kids?"

Noah opened her mouth to say no, but Christy just grabbed her arm and started pulling her toward a table in the back of the room. She had no idea what was going on, but there was no doubt in her mind now that Christy had to suspect _something._

"Lily, I want you to meet Noah. She works with your father," Christy looked at the redhead expectantly, who gave the teenage girl an awkward wave while trying to avoid the glare Jessie was giving the blonde woman.

"Hi Noah," Jessie beamed, her eyes sparkling. "It's nice to meet you, honey."

"Mom, can I stay at Tara's tonight?" Lily asked her mother, ignoring the new fourth to their third.

Noah's eyes turned toward the girl sitting at the table. She looked so much like her mom, but she could see Link in there somewhere. Thinking of Link, Noah glanced around the large room, suddenly feeling claustrophobic. She found him at the exact moment he seemed to notice her standing near his estranged wife. His face darkened before he excused himself from whatever conversation he had been in and headed straight for them.

"Hey guys," Link said, slipping an arm around his daughter's shoulders. "What's goin' on over here?"

He smiled, but Noah could see the crinkle between his brows that indicated he was also uncomfortable.

"Oh, Hi honey," Christy said, Noah's eyes flashed to Link who was pointedly avoiding her. "I met _Noah_ here, over by the food and I just wanted to introduce her is all. You thought you could keep her all to yourself, huh?"

Link's eyes narrowed just a little, "what are you playin' at Chris?"

Noah started to try and excuse herself, but Christy cut her off.

"I just meant that we don't know many of the people that work for ya, is all."

"I'd love to stay and get to know you more," Noah lied, talking loud enough to be heard, "but I was actually getting ready to head home. My, my, uh...cat. My cat's been sick and I need to go check on her."

"Oh! You're not stayin' late?" Christy grinned like the Cheshire, watching her husband for his reaction. When he didn't give one her smile only seemed to grow more.

"No, no. I'm not. I better start to say my goodbyes but it was nice to meet yinz," Noah gave the table a small smile before she turned on her heel to walk away.

"Noah!" She turned back, looking into Link's face as he let go of his daughter and sat up. Christy was looking between the two of them, but she remained quiet. "I-We," he started, gesturing to Christy and Lily, "leave for North Carolina tomorrow mornin' for the Holidays. I just wanted to say have a good break, is all. Since I won't be seein' you before I leave."

"Oh, okay," Noah replied, fighting the urge to pull her lower lip into her mouth. "Thanks, Link. I hope you have a good break too. All of you," she smiled again at everyone else. "I'm gonna head out now, but have a good night everyone."

With that, she was gone.

Link watched her walk away, fighting the urge to go after her. He hadn't talked to her since that morning he had woken up after his dream about her. It wasn't that he wanted to ignore her, he had just felt embarrassed at the time. Then he started feeling confused, and things seemed to spiral out of control from there with him ultimately deciding he needed this break to clear his head and prepare for the biggest changes of his life.

Only as she walked away, and the realization that he wouldn't see her for two weeks hit him, did he feel the weight of his decision to try for his own inner peace. He hadn't told her needed space. He hadn't reached out after she asked if he was okay, and he hadn't told her that he cared for her but just needed to heal a little before pursuing anything else. Seeing her at work the past two days had been difficult and Link had wanted nothing more than to pull her into him and dive into her energy, but with his upcoming trip his house had become more of a disaster and he needed to focus...but watching her walk away...

 _'Shit, I can't leave her like this'_

 _L- '8:15pm- Hey, can we talk?'_

 _L- '8:37pm- I'm sorry I didn't get to you sooner.'_

 _L- '9:10pm- Noah, please. I need to talk to you.'_

 _L- '9:33pm- I can't leave tomorrow without explaining myself.'_

 _L- '9:58pm- I deserve this...I'm sorry.'_

 _N- '10:07pm- Come over, we can talk. Sending you my location now.'_

Link sat on the little grey sectional in the corner of Noah's living room, his eyes scanning over the layout. She had answered the door with a towel in her hair and asked him to wait a minute while she disappeared through an open doorway into what seemed like a bedroom. Her kitchen was small, but the little island separating it from the room he sat was the only barrier in her open floor plan. She had house plants covering most surfaces of the little apartment, and the space was filled with colors and patterns. The only light was being cast from soft white lights she had strung around her ceiling and he could smell an essential oil wafting through the air. An orange tabby cat purred under his left hand, and Link let a small smile play at the corners of his mouth.

Her apartment was exactly what he had imagined it would be: clean, comfortable, warm, and inviting.

"Sorry 'bout that," Noah spoke as she came back into the living room, going to her fridge and grabbing two bottles of kombucha before making her way to the sectional part of the couch.

Link let his eyes rake over her shapely figure, clad only in a pair of tiny yoga shorts and a tight t-shirt, hair damp and hanging in waves just above her shoulders. Without makeup, he saw the sprinkle of freckles lightly dusting the bridge of her nose.

"No, it's fine. Thanks for letting me come over," he relaxed back into the cushions as she sat lotus style on the end of her chaise. The orange tabby made its way to her lap almost immediately regardless of Link's head scratches.

"Hello Dorito," she nuzzled the kitty.

"His name's Dorito?"

" _Her_ name, yeah." Noah smiled, "and don't worry about it. Um, it being coming over, it's fine. I, well..."

"...I wanted to talk to you too," Link picked up after Noah had trailed off. "Really, and I'm-I'm sorry that I've been, I don't know. I, I should've reached out sooner."

"Look, Link," Noah sighed, "I don't want to make this weird or anything."

She avoided his eyes, opting to look down at the fur ball curled in her lap instead. Link felt the hair on the back of his neck stand. He didn't like the direction this conversation was heading and it had barely even begun.

Noah continued, "but if you changed your mind, that's...that's fine. It's okay, I know that..."

"Woah wait a minute girl, changed my mind about what?" Link's brow pulled down over his eyes in confusion.

Her green ones finally met his, dancing between them almost willing him to just say what he needed to say.

"A-about, about me? I just meant if you wanted to make it work...with Christy?"

Link's mouth opened and shut like a fish. Work it out with Christy? What? How?

"I don't wanna make it work with Christy, Noah, where'd ya get somethin' like that?"

Noah felt her chest tighten, but she pushed on, explaining that she had just assumed as much when he hadn't responded to her, their working relationship felt strained, and she had seen Christy tonight at the wrap party...

"...not that she can't be there!" Noah quickly added, "I just meant I get it. She-she's the mother of your children, and I'm just...I'm just your, I work for you. I can't compare, all the history you guys share, I get it. I just, you know, I wish you would've just _told_ me instead of...instead of...this..."

Link couldn't help but stare at the girl. She had just unloaded everything onto him, and she had been so wrong. Work it out with Christy?

"I, I don't want to work it out with her," Link almost whispered, his mind racing around him.

He had done this. He had made her think these things for the past few days; like their months spent together had meant nothing to him, and that he didn't care about her. He should've just talked to her sooner. Did she feel different now? Did he blow it? He needed to save this.

"You...don't?" Her perfectly arched eyebrow curved above her left eye.

That bottom lip was pulled between her teeth and Link felt his hands start to twitch, wanting to reach out and touch it. Instead, he tried to focus on what needed to be said before his nerves left him shaking all over the ground.

"No, crazy girl. I-I'm fallin' for you Noah," he confessed.

"You're what?"

She had gone completely still, Dorito making a noise of protest before hopping down and going to curl in her bed in the corner. Link had said it, he might as well just keep diving in. This is why he was here.

"I said, I'm" he swallowed, before looking at her again. In the soft glow of her fairy lights, she looked like an angel. "I'm fallin' for you. I, I don't want to make it work with Christy. I just, I got some things I need to say and I need you to listen, okay?"

Noah blinked her big green eyes at him, seemingly at a loss for words as she just nodded her head in agreement.

He ran a hand through his hair before continuing, "alright. Now just listen. I, I'm a mess, I told you that, but-but I'm not stupid. I know how I feel. I-I... you, I got feelin's, Noah." His throat felt like it was constricting as she continued to gaze at him. He pushed on.

"I need some, some time to heal and figure some shit out. I got a lot of things that I, there's things that are gonna," Link huffed in frustration. "What I'm tryna say is there's things that are gonna get messy and I don't wanna make you a part of that. You don't...you don't deserve to get dragged through the mud. I don't know how long it's gonna take, but we can't...I can't be anythin' to anyone until things calm down."

"What is this, Link?" Noah whispered. Her voice was small, "what are you saying?"

"I'm sayin' I, I'm...I'm leavin' Christy."

Link's voice stopped. It just, without his own accord, stopped working and his eyes filled with salty tears. He hadn't said it out loud yet, not to anyone. He had barely said it to himself, and now he had just admitted it to Noah. He was really leaving. He couldn't do it anymore. He needed to get out and start living his life again instead of merely existing.

"I'm sorry," Link apologized, swiping at his eyes, "I've never said it, ya know?"

"You're leaving...where, what's gonna happen?"

Link shrugged a shoulder, "I ain't got that far yet. I gotta figure it out, and that's why I can't...I can't do this," Link gestured between them, "whatever this is. Not yet. Don't mean I don't want to though."

"I feel the same way, Link." She tucked a loose strand of her wavy hair behind her ear, "I think I've felt that way for a while but, but we couldn't be anything, you know?"

"I do know," he replied, sitting back against the cushions. "I honestly never thought it could be a reality. I've been all over the damn place, here n' there, just not knowin' what I wanted...but, I know now. I know I want you, somehow..."

When he looked back up into her face, she had leaned toward him instinctually, lips parted and eyelashes falling heavy over her emerald orbs. Link felt her stare deep inside of his chest, boiling into a heat that burned its way down to his groin. The air between them shivered and without a second thought, Link leaned forward too, drawn to the woman like a magnet.

"...but we can't be anything..."

Her voice was soft, inviting, and Link was close enough to see her pupils had blown, leaving a thin ring of green.

"...nothin' serious, not yet..."

They were close now, he could feel her breath puff over his face.

"...nothin' serious..." she repeated, adjusting her position so that she was on her knees, invading more of his space as she leaned across the gap, "but you want me?"

Her words were heavy with implication and the meaning hung weighty and intense. Link's hands found her back, almost lifting her and inviting her to crawl onto his lap as his body shuddered.

"Mm," he mumbled as she settled onto his lap, her knees hugging his hips, "'course I do."

"Right now?" She boldly offered, her hands finding his hair and combing it away from his face.

Link immediately felt his groin twitch, aware that she could feel him growing hard. Of course, he wanted her right now. He wanted her in every way, and he'd only _just_ dreamt about it. But...

That was dangerous, even he knew that. He already liked her too much.

Against his better judgment he bit through grit teeth, "I want to, _God I want to,_ but it ain't a good idea."

The corner of his mouth pulled up in a smirk as she brushed her pouty mouth over his, moving onto his cheek, dusting his face in tender kisses. He needed to tell her the other reason he was here. He needed to tell her about his dream, get it off his chest, and if she felt the same after...

"Somethin' happened," Link said before his hands found her damp locks, his mouth slanting over hers before pulling her back. "Noah I gotta tell ya somethin'..."

She moved quickly, and in a flash, her mouth was on his again, nothing soft about the way she moved her lips. Link felt the world disappear around him and all he was left with was this one person, and this one moment. He pressed her into him as much as he could, one arm pulling her further into him while his other skimmed down over her shorts. Reflexively his hand squeezed her ass, earning him a roll of her hips. He groaned into her mouth, his hips pushing up into hers in return.

Her arms locked around his neck, one of her hands finding his hair before pulling back just enough to whisper, throaty and breathless, against his lips, "tell me tomorrow..."

"Tomorrow?"

He leaned into her this time, forward momentum making the kiss a clash of tongues and teeth. He felt light-headed, consumed by the tiny redhead devouring him. This felt so right, Link's world started to spin.

"Stay," she mumbled into his skin as she broke from his lips and sprinkled little kisses down the vein that ran the length of his neck.

Link's hand molded against her skin, reaching to touch every inch of her that he could. _Stay. He could stay._

"...what time do you leave tomorrow?" She asked, prompting him to kiss her again before answering.

"Gotta be at LAX by 9, plane leaves at 11," he dove back in, tasting her, and rolling his hips against her again.

The small noise that left her mouth was incredible and nearly strangled him. He knew he was playing with fire, but he didn't care. Link had often acted or said things without thinking them all the way through; tonight wouldn't be any different. He would sort out the consequences later. She had him hypnotized, a fire burning through them and melting them into one. He didn't answer, instead, he stretched forward, meeting her for a searing kiss. They clung to one another, flush against each other in a bruising embrace while their mouths explored over and over.

With a lot of effort, Noah pulled herself away, standing up reaching for Link's much larger hand. He understood what would happen if he took it. If he reached out and let her lead him to her bedroom there would be no turning back, no rewinding time and no undoing what they were about to do. Hesitating only for a fraction of a second, Link reached out for her, standing and following her as she walked backward to the door, never breaking eye contact.

They would have to work out the rules for whatever this was later.

 _Tomorrow..._


	11. You're Beautiful

WARNING: THIS CHAPTER IS ALL SEX! If that isn't your thing, skip over it and the story will still pick back up...except there's still going to be more sex...so...ENJOY!

Noah felt the air shiver around her when she backed into her room, her skin pimpling and every hair on her body standing to attention. A radiant heat pulsed through her core, and she physically ached between her legs. The way Link stared at her, eyes intense and pupils expanded, drove her further away from any sense and deeper into a hazy lust.

She hadn't expected to spend time with him in her bedroom. When he had texted her, it had actually taken some time for her to let him in; anticipating the let down had kept her from replying sooner. When he disclosed he was leaving Christy, she could only blink at him while she processed what that could mean. When he had confessed he wanted her, though, every nerve in her body sparked to life.

She had wanted Link for months, only acknowledging her insane attraction to him recently. It seemed impossible not to stare after him when he walked away, or appreciate the broad expanse of his shoulders and the way the muscles rippled when he moved. She knew there might be consequences later, but tonight they didn't matter. Tonight she wasn't thinking with her heart; tonight she was thinking with another part of her body...

Noah closed the door behind their backs, and in a flash Link's mouth was back on hers. He engulfed her, their mouths tasting each other's over and over and setting both of them on fire.

Link was overwhelmed. In her little bedroom, her floral scent consumed him and made his head spin. Her tongue pressing into his, her arms locked around his neck pulling him down into her, his erection pressed against the zipper of his jeans; it was all fast and felt unreal.

He pulled away abruptly, sure he was going to wake from whatever dream this must be. Wide green eyes stared back at him. He kissed her again, harder, before pulling back again sure this was it as his head continued to swim around the little redhead puffing hot minty air onto his face. His eyes danced between both of hers, searching for any sign that they shouldn't do this but finding none.

Another hard kiss, sucking her tongue into his mouth, and her hands flew into his hair, holding him against her not willing to give him another moment to overthink what they were doing. Both of them felt their resolve melt away, and with a growl deep inside of Noah's throat, Link cupped her ass and hoisted her onto his hips, carrying her in three large steps to the bed.

Noah's back hit her mattress a split second after she felt herself falling. Letting out a small "oomph", she peered up at the brunette through heavy lashes. His fingers working quickly to undo the buttons of his shirt with expert precision. She quivered anticipating what else his hands could do as she swung around onto her knees.

Link tossed his flannel across the surface of her dresser, his eyes never leaving the curve of Noah's spine as she crawled to him across her bed. Her mouth was on his again in a second, so soft and sweet. Her hands flattened against his hip bones, fingers pushing under the hem of his plain black tee and sliding up against the planes of his stomach. If he thought he was hot before, her hands sliding against his skin left third-degree burns.

They broke away so he could reach between his shoulder blades and tug the fabric the rest of the way up and off.

"You better catch up," he smirked, balling up the dark cloth and tossing it away.

There was no hesitation as she shed the shirt that clung to her body. Noah may have wished in that moment she would've put something other than the simple beige satin on, but Link's groin twitched at the site.

She was all pale, creamy skin stretching taught against beautiful sinew. Her hips flared with subtle curves, and her perky breasts filled the thin material of her bralette, nipples hard against the fabric.

"You gonna keep staring at them", Noah teased, a finger dancing across her collarbone, "or you gonna come touch them?"

It had been the better part of the year since Link had touched a woman, but he remembered exactly how. He was on her in a second, hand gripping the back of her thigh and tugging forward. In one swift move, she was on her back again and he was lowering himself on top of her, skin brushing against skin and mouths meeting in a searing kiss.

Noah shuddered at the weight of Link hovering just above her, the light spackle of hair sprinkled across his torso tickling her bosom. Her hands traveled down his arms, muscles hard under her exploring fingers, before curling under and trekking up his back, nails digging into his shoulder blades.

Link hissed, his mouth breaking away from Noah's to travel down to the pulse point under her right ear. He became aware of her thighs wrapped around his hips, his hard-on pressed against her heat through too many layers as she writhed underneath him. He lapped at her sweet skin, nibbling and biting before soothing where his teeth sunk as they left a trail of his saliva down to the top of her breasts.

Noah was smaller than Christy in every way and much feistier. Her body wriggled beneath his, and when he closed his mouth around her nipple through the fabric, sucking as much of the cloth covered flesh into his mouth as he could, she keened and pushed her torso against him as her throat let out a feral howl. His arms wrapped behind her arching back, lifting her further and sitting back on his haunches with her atop him. Her hand snuck behind her own back, popping the clasp and making quick work of the fabric.

Link was so hard it hurt. Noah's perky tits sat right in front of his face, little peachy bud tight in the middle just begging him to pull it into his mouth. A breathy "fuck" escaped from between her lips as he did just that and he thought for one horrifying second that he might cum in his pants. Her hips rolled against his and if he didn't stop her, he was going to embarrass himself. It had been too long.

"Lay back," he whispered into the valley between her breasts, breath hot.

She complied almost immediately, and Link peeled the yoga shorts hugging her hips down and off her long legs. She didn't have anything on underneath, and he found himself staring at her in appreciation in all her naked glory. His mouth nearly watering at the site of her sprawled out for his taking.

Noah didn't know what could be going through his head as his eyes roamed over her body. She had always been a little self-conscious about her body. She wasn't the tallest, and she didn't have the biggest boobs or the tightest tummy, and her butt was bigger than she wanted. She had gotten her fair share of attention over the years but there was always something in the back of her mind telling her she would never look like the supermodels.

Instinctively, her hands moved to cover what they could.

"Don't" he murmured, his fingers reaching out to grace the soft skin of her upper thigh.

Noah pulled her hands away, resting back on to the pillowy down comforter. Link 's hand traveled higher and higher, his thumb caressing the apex of her thigh while his four remaining fingers dug into the flesh at her lower hip.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered.

Noah felt her heart leap into her throat as she stared up at the man she had never expected to be allowed to have in any way. He was the beautiful one, with his dark hair fluffy and messy atop his head and crooked grin softly gracing his features. Noah's body trembled as the heat re-lit every inch.

"Come here," she reached up, pulling him down on top of her and crushing her mouth against his.

Link let out an 'oof' as he landed on his left elbow, but Noah swallowed the noise. There was an urgency in the way she kissed him; a deep seeded need in the way she devoured every part of him. Her hands promptly snuck between them, quickly moving to loosen his belt as he broke away from her mouth again and began pressing hot, open mouth kisses down her neck. He didn't stop there.

Just as Noah had managed to pop the button on his dark jeans, Link pushed himself down her body, stopping briefly to coat one nipple, then the other, with his saliva. Her hands found their way into his hair as he sprinkled kisses down her sternum and belly. His teeth scraped along the sensitive flesh of her lower tummy, and she couldn't help but let out a low moan.

Link felt the soft, well-trimmed hair brush against his chin as he continued his onslaught of kisses trailing down. He had a vivid flashback to the dream he had where he had awoken with her taste on his tongue. He could smell her sweet, musky scent and when he pulled back to look at her, he could see that she was already wet for him. He didn't have to imagine what she tasted like anymore, what she smelled like, what noises she would make...all he had to do was stretch forward...

Noah's hands reflexively tightened in his locks when he ran a wide, flat tongue from her bum to the top of her cleft, a hiss escaping from between her teeth when he pressed an open-mouthed kiss to her swollen clit. She tasted better than his dream interpretation and when he dipped his tongue inside of her, it came out coated with the taste of honey and something distinctly Noah.

Link ate her like a man that had been denied supper, and he supposed in a way he had been. _He was starving._ Over and over he plunged his tongue inside of her tight walls, tasting as much of her as he could before sucking her bundle of nerves between his teeth and rolling it against his lips. Her throaty moans edging him on while he continued driving her further toward the edge. It didn't take long before her breathy panting and cursing had him cupping her ass to angle her better for his consumption.

Noah's left hand buried in Link's hair, holding his head in place while she moved her hips against the stubble of his face as she came close to losing control. Her right hand skimmed up to dig her nails into the plump flesh of her breasts, and a light sheen of sweat began to break out over goose-bumped flesh. She was going to cum, she could feel it building in small ripples spreading from the place his mouth continued to suck.

"I'm...so...close..." Noah breathed out, voice hitching into a whine before growing louder.

Link groaned, garnering a response that had him smiling against the hole he was just fucking with his tongue. He wanted to bring her there. He knew that once he buried himself inside of her he wasn't going to last as he wanted. It had been far too long for him to perform like he would have wanted but he would be damned if Noah wouldn't be spent after this.

He slowly sunk his middle finger into her core, twisting it when he was knuckle deep and curling it when he found the soft, spongy piece on her front wall.

That was all it took.

The pleasure rippled harder and harder before the air in Noah's lungs slammed out of her as her mouth opened in a silent scream and her eyes screwed shut. Every muscle from her navel to her knees tightened and pulsed around the finger she felt buried in her cunt. She couldn't see, couldn't breathe, couldn't focus on anything but the waves of pleasure coursing through and making every part of her body tingle before reality crashed back down around her. She gasped for air as Link sat up, the lower half of his face glistening with her juice before he ran his forearm across his mouth.

She reached for him quickly, scrambling to pull him down on her, one hand gripping the back of his neck while the other shoved at the waistband of his jeans. They kissed deeply, her taste transferring between their tongues. Link broke away only to help with his pants, backing off the bed and standing to push the jeans down his legs. Noah sat on her elbows, eyeing the tent in his briefs with her plump bottom lip pulled between her teeth and her eyes glazed with lust.

Link hooked his thumbs in his waistband, hesitating when he realized...

"Do you have a...a condom?"

Noah stared at him, her post-coital bliss fogging her head and making her reaction time slow down. A condom? She blinked, oh! A condom! He probably hadn't needed to carry condoms in a really long time.

Noah rolled onto her right side, stretching her full length to pull open the drawer of her bedside table to dig around for the small box she kept there with contraceptives. She was on birth control, but right now didn't seem like the best time to mention it. She happened to have a condom anyway, and it was their first time. They would talk about it later.

She felt the bed dip behind her and a warm hand press against her hip. She smiled as her fingers wrapped around the wrapper, and when she rolled back he was there to meet her with a kiss.

He had lost the briefs as she had gotten the condom and for a second she was sad she had missed it, but Link quickly chased that thought away as their kiss grew more intense as he settled on top of her. She felt his hard length press against her inner thigh, long and hot.

"I want you so bad," she mumbled against his mouth.

"Me too," he whispered back, their tongues dancing again before he plucked the condom from her hand.

Noah watch as he tore the package open with his teeth, his other arm propping him above her as she stretched forward and sucked the tender skin of his neck between her teeth. His breath hitched as he rolled the condom on and the redhead licked his skin to soothe where her teeth had just marked.

There was nothing left to do now; all he needed was to line-up. Noah stared up at him, drawing her knees toward her chest as he settled between her thighs. She was so, so ridiculously gorgeous with her eyes bright and shiny, skin glowing post orgasm and ready for him. Her hand dipped between them and Link's eyes fluttered closed when he felt her nimble fingers wrap around him, guiding him toward her ready hole.

She accepted him easily, her core hot and wet. Both of their breaths hitched as he breached the barrier, and Link groaned as he slipped inside of her inch by agonizing inch. She was so unbelievably tight but stretched easily to accommodate his size, fitting him like a glove. Link watched her face as he bottomed out inside of her; eyes fluttered shut and beautiful bottom lip pulled between pearly teeth before popping out as she let out a lusty sigh.

Everything around them disappeared and there was nothing left in the world as her eyes slowly opened back up and met his. Time ceased to exist, and Link felt the words threatening to spill out of his mouth before she reached up and brought his mouth down to meet hers. He slowly pulled out before sinking back in again, eliciting another small moan of pleasure from her and a shaky breath from him.

Noah couldn't' believe how perfect he filled her. When his pelvis hit hers and he pushed, he sat deep and she bordered the precipice of pleasure and pain. It felt incredible, _he_ felt incredible. His weight pinning her down made her feel small as he started pumping in and out.

They found a steady pace together, pushing and pulling in tandem and creating friction, bodies starting to slide against one another from their chests to their bellies.

"So...good..." he breathed out, closer already than he wanted to be.

"Mmm," she responded, hands traveling down his back while her knees drew higher up his sides, fingernails digging in just above the dimples in his lower back.

Link took the opportunity to push up onto his hands, boldly hooking one of Noah's legs with his elbow, planting his knees into the bed, and _digging_ in.

Noah's back arched and her head pressed back into her pillow, a loud moan of ecstasy ripping from her throat as this new angle had Link hitting so many new spots inside of her. He picked up the pace, the room filling with the sound of their skin meeting, hard breathing, and grunts and groans of pleasure and bliss.

Link spared a glance down their bodies to the point they were connected, obscenities slipping past his lips as he watched his cock slip in and out of Noah, shiny with her juices as she gripped him.

He felt the familiar tingle in the base of his spine and no amount of thinking of other things was going to delay it. He hadn't had sex in over 6 months, Noah was too beautiful, and _fuck if she wasn't the warmest, tightest pussy he'd ever been inside..._

"Not...gonna...last..." he grunt out between thrusts, head falling down to meet Noah's heaving chest after releasing her leg, pressing a kiss to her sternum before resting his forehead there. "Too...long..."

Noah's arms came up to wrap around his shoulders and neck as they lost their pace, Link's hips growing more frantic as the tingle in his spine grew more intense and his balls began to tighten.

"Cum for me baby," she whispered into his hair, breathing hard and moving her hips to meet his frenzied movements.

 _Cum for me baby._

That's all he needed to hear. Three more thrusts and he buried himself deep inside of her, groaning and moaning against Noah's slick skin. Stars burst behind his eyes as he released his seed into the condom and fell over the edge of bliss.

It took a few minutes for Link to come back to reality, each of his senses returning one at a time. He could feel Noah under him, her chest rising and falling and every part of her wrapped around every part of him. He smelled sex in the air, arousal, and sweat lingering around them. His heart beat in his ears, and Noah's shaky breathing washed over him. He could definitely taste her still, so much better than he ever could've imagined and when he opened his eyes and looked up at her, pure adoration exploded from his pores.

It took him a lot of effort to pull out of her, groaning as he did, and when he stood to cross to her en suite bathroom the muscles he hadn't used in a long time ached. Link stared at himself for too long in the mirror above the sink, investigating the little bruises dotted along his neck. He would need to hide them...

"Link?" her voice was small on the other side of the door. It made him smile.

He opened the door, looking down at her, a crooked smile on his face. She tried not to, but her grin split big.

"Hi," she said, turning her cheesy grin away from him.

He followed her gaze, bringing it back to his with his own "hi".

"Um, you're," Noah threw a thumb behind her, nibbling her lip for a moment before her smile faltered a little, "you're phone started ringing, and I thought...I thought..."

Her words drifted off as Link moved forward, never taking his eyes off of her, leaning down and brushing his nose against hers before capturing her lips in a sweet kiss.

He knew who it was that was calling, but he was making a decision right now, with Noah pressed against him, to ignore everything and everyone but her until the sun came up. It wasn't a good idea, he knew that. He had just said earlier they couldn't become anything serious yet, but they had just had sex and now there was an understanding that he was staying the night...Link threw it all out the window, at least for now.

They would talk later, they needed to after this, but for now, he was going to enjoy the first moments of pure bliss he'd had in months...


	12. Hypocrite

**WARNING: Adult Content.**

 **This chapter was a little difficult for me to write, mostly because I'm obviously pulling for Noah/Link but...well, keep reading...**

 ***Song for this chapter: 9 Crimes- Damien Rice***

Link blinked languidly against the soft shine of light floating from the living room. He could see that it was still dark outside, even if the orange and blue glow of the city of Angels lit up against the sky. He could see the curve of her hip silhouetted, hear her soft puffs of air shallow while she slept peacefully. The corner of his mouth pulled up as he stretched his sore muscles, stiff from their vigorous usage after lying dormant for so long.

Link rolled slowly over to dig his cell phone out of the back pocket of his jeans on the floor, clicking it once before hissing against the bright light assaulting his unadjusted eyes. Mechanically and by pure muscle memory, he quickly turned the light down, finally able to peer at the time.

 _5:18 am_

There were a handful of missed calls and some text messages, but he clicked the phone off again instead of checking them. He only had a couple of hours left before he needed to drag himself out of Noah's bed and the sun would start rising soon. He wasn't ready to face the real world. That meant dealing with the aftermath of his night spent here in the first place...no, not yet.

He moved carefully, not wanting to wake her as he rolled back over. She was incredible, and for just a moment Link felt himself stop breathing. Her face was peaceful, red hair falling in little wisps across her cheek. He reached out, wishing that the ever-present shake in his hands wouldn't disturb her when he brushed the hair off her face. She nuzzled into his touch, but her breathing stayed shallow.

He knew things couldn't be the same, not after this. He wasn't prepared to have to face down everything he had been denying for months, but here he was, sleeping next to her with a flourish of pure emotion coursing through his veins after a night spent making love. He couldn't go back now.

The silver of his wedding band flashed, drawing his eyes down to its almost painful existence. He had admitted he wanted to leave Christy last night. He had thought it before but actually saying it was new. Rhett had been trying to get him to come to that conclusion on his own for the better part of seven months, but it wasn't until he realized he was about to screw his chance with Noah that he had actually said it.

 _"I'm leavin' Christy."_

He really was; he was leaving. That's how far he'd gotten. If he started thinking too far ahead he might have another one of his panic attacks, so before he could let his thoughts wander he took a deep breath and ran his hand down Noah's side until he reached the thick comforter draped across her hip, pulling it up their bodies. He had just drawn her into his chest and closed his eyes again when he felt her hand tickle up his rib cage and heard a small noise push past her lips.

"Hm, what time is it?" She mumbled into the crook of his neck sleepily.

Link smiled at her crown, placing a soft kiss before, "early, go back to bed."

"'m in bed," she replied and he could feel the slant of her mouth against his collarbone.

"Then go back to sleep," he said, wrapping a hand up in her hair lovingly.

He felt her pouty lips press against his throat lazily.

"Don't wanna sleep," she mumbled before placing another kiss, more pressure and the slick of her tongue waking up different parts of his body. "Leaving soon..."

Link pulled her head back enough to kiss her properly. She knew this changed everything between them, but she didn't know how. If she were being honest, she didn't really care as long as he kept kissing her the way he did. It was slow and lethargic, both of them comfortable and warm in each other's embrace. She responded immediately, pushing her body against his and bringing her right knee up to allow her leg to wrap around his hip.

"...gotta sleep..." he tried again, more for his benefit than hers, but then her tongue found its way into his mouth again and a little 'mew' escaped from her mouth.

"Mm," he swallowed the noise, his groin twitching, "guess I don't need'ta sleep _that_ bad."

Noah felt him grow hard against her thigh. She hadn't intended to wake up and start something with Link, but when she had started to shiver awake as his hand traveled down the length of her, it was the first thing that came to her mind.

"Sleep on the plane," she pressed against his mouth.

Link growled deep in his throat, tilting her head back before he caught her bottom lip between his teeth. Noah gasped as his teeth sunk into her bottom lip before letting it pop out and chasing it with his tongue.

"Always wanted to do that," he smirked.

"Oh yeah? Know what I always wanted to do?" Noah challenged, a mischievous glint in her eye when she pushed up on her elbow.

She could see the shadow of his left brow quirk in the near dark; an invitation for her to amuse him. In one smooth move she had him on his back and was straddling his lap, his hard length resting against her buttock as she leaned over him. His hands found her hips, molding the flesh between his palms before traveling up the length of her spine. Her hands slid up his chest and over his shoulders before she leaned flat against him, their mouths convening again while his hands continued to roam over her body.

Her hips began to roll almost on their own against his pelvic bone, warming them both up. No part of her wanted to go back to sleep now. Not while his cock slid between her folds with each twist of her waist.

"We gonna do this again, huh?" He teased, moving his mouth down her neck as she pushed against his chest.

His mouth plucked each of her nipples briefly as she sat all the way up, a hand tracing down his stomach as she reached between them. Her answer was nimble fingers wrapped around him and raised hips to guide him inside of her.

" _Fuck_ ," he groaned out as she lowered herself down.

Noah loved it when he cussed. It did something to her and if he wasn't already inside of her, she would've rolled them over right then and there. She felt so full, her walls stretching to accommodate his size. With her on top he went deeper, and when she sat on him fully her head fell back as she sighed.

Then she wasted no time in riding him like a bull...

They bucked against each other, each thrust hitting deep. Noah balanced herself on his chest, rolling and bouncing her hips as he dug his fingers into the flesh of her hips. There was no condom this time, their skin slicking against one another's and pulling at all the right places. Over and over they met with a slap of skin against skin, grunting and groaning vulgarities into the graying light of the rising sun.

"Noah," Link panted finally, "I'm, _fuck_...I'm-I'm...mmph."

She dropped down against him, both of their mouths hot and panting. She ground her clit against his pelvic bone and base of his erection, the first ripple of her orgasm shivering out against her sensitive bud. She placed open mouth kisses along his jaw until she reached his ear, sucking a lobe between her teeth before she whispered low.

"I'm on birth control..."

A switch in him seemed to turn on at her suggestive comment. It clicked, and everything Link had been holding back came flooding forward. His arms wrapped around her middle, squeezing her against him and holding her in place as he planted his feet in the soft cushion of her mattress and _thrust_ up into her with enough force to bounce her headboard off the wall.

Her hand shot out, pressing against the cool steel of the frame, lessening the blow of it smacking the wall, and a strangled moan whined out of her.

"Ohmygod... _mmm_...fuck...don't stop..." she rambled and moaned.

Link continued pounding up into her hot core, each one of her cries of ecstasy bringing him home. His hamstrings were on fire but the tingle in his spine was strong and his balls were tight. His stamina was stronger than it had been the night before, but he wasn't going to last much longer. Damn if he wouldn't feel her cum while he was buried deep inside of her though.

One of his arms stayed locked around her waist like a vice while the other traveled down her spine and over the curve of her ass, kneading her cheek and guiding the shallow movement of her hips while he continued his ministrations. Her hand stayed against the backboard, but her head fell to rest against his.

"Cum," he demanded on a breath, his blue eyes boring straight into her green ones. "Come on, baby."

The intimacy and intensity was too much, and Link felt her muscles contract in her buttock and her thighs, stiffening against his grip. Not a moment later her eyes squeezed shut and her walls contracted around him, her noises ceasing as she rode the waves of her orgasm and he pushed through the impossibly tight squeeze she had on him.

That's all he needed to drive up into her, both of his hands shooting into her hair and pulling her mouth against his as he came deep inside of her. For just a handful of seconds they were the only two in the world that existed, their orgasms leaving them blissful and dazed. Their chests moved in tandem, breathing back and forth as she sunk further down against him as her muscles relaxed. His arms wrapped around her again, embracing her and holding her gently.

"That was _amazing_ ," she breathed in the space between his neck and shoulder.

He hummed his agreement, placing a soft kiss to her sweat soaked temple before rolling them both over and slipping out of her with a soft groan. They lay there for a few minutes catching their breaths, just feeling each other's presence before she let him know that she would be back in a minute, bouncing off the bed and into her bathroom. Link watched her go, appreciating the curves and planes of her body.

By the time she came back, washcloth in her hand for him, the light outside cast a gloomy overcast grey around the room. He made sure to set an alarm for 7, sighing when his alarm let him know that was less than an hour and a half from now. She crawled into the bed next to him, their arms wrapping around one another and settling down.

"Hey," she whispered after a few minutes, "you said last night you had something to tell me."

"I did," he responded, eyes still closed. "Seems pointless now, though."

She grumbled into his chest, seeming to accept that for now in her half-asleep stupor. Link knew she wouldn't let it go, but was happy to know that for now, she was happy relenting in the favor of sleep. It really did seem pointless now in comparison to them actually having sex. As far as what he'd done with Christy, well, he hadn't relented to leaving her at that point so maybe he'd just keep his big mouth shut for once and focus on the future...no matter what happened.

* * *

Link put the car in park and took a deep breath. When his alarm had shaken him out of his surface of sleep the second time, he felt like absolute garbage. When he finally let himself read the texts he had been sent the night before, he felt even more like shit.

Christy had been having a lot of trouble with Lincoln, and she had begged for him to come home and help her get them ready to travel. When it became clear that he wasn't answering her, she had stopped texting and had started calling. He had ignored her still, but now he was walking into the house and there was no way he could ignore her anymore. The worst part was, he felt bad for it.

She had needed him. Like, actually needed him and didn't want to start a fight. She just needed his authority to keep herself from going mad with all three of their children. That was his job. He was a dad, and he should've been there for them.

But...

He didn't regret it for a minute. Not once, even though he felt bad, did he ever wish he wouldn't have stayed with Noah and done what they did. He was still trying to work out how to balance this new life, and Christy and he hadn't even talked yet. Everything was a mess but not her, not Noah.

He was still smiling as he walked through the front door...

"Wow. Look who decided to actually come home."

Link's smile faded as he looked up into the tired eyes of his wife, standing at the bottom of the stairs with her arms crossed. Her hair was pulled into a severe ponytail and her makeup was done, but she was wearing joggers and a tank. He heard a scream from upstairs.

"Charles Lincoln Neal!" Christy shouted up the stairs, "your father is home so you better be leavin' your sister alone and bringin' your dang suitcase down these stairs right now!"

"Dad?" Lincoln's face peered over the side of the landing, quickly followed by his other two kids as Jade came barreling down the stairs and leaped into his arms.

"Yeah, hey guys. Listen to your mother, okay?"

All of his children seemed to sense the tension between their parents, even Lando who usually was not as perceptive as his older siblings. They all relented, backing off quietly.

Christy didn't move as Link made his way further into the house, dropping Jade back onto the floor.

"I'm sorry, Chris. I was busy and I..."

"You smell like sex," she hissed quietly.

He stopped in his tracks. They were about to leave in just a few short hours, he hadn't slept a wink, he was sore, and the last thing he wanted to do was fight with her. He wouldn't. He knew what he had done last night, he knew she could tell, but he just needed this start to their break to go off as smooth as possible. There would be time to fall apart, but it couldn't be now.

"This ain't the time," he started, but she cut him off again.

"You go see Noah?"

"She ain't got nothin' to do with this," he lied.

She knew him too well and called him on his bluff right away.

"Look, Christy," Link glanced up the stairs to make sure they didn't have any tiny eavesdroppers, "you wanna do this, fine, but right now we're 'bout to go home'n see our families for the holidays. It's gonna have to wait."

Her jaw was set and her eyes were shiny. She knew he was right, this wasn't the opportune time to have this conversation, but his disheveled hair and sleepy eyes made her blood boil. He coiled when she touched him, regardless of what she did to try to redeem herself. Now he stood in front of her and she just _knew_ he had screwed that little redhead.

"You're a fucking hypocrite," she spit before pivoting on her heal and storming down the hall to their bedroom.

Hearing Christy swear had startled him, and for a second he just stood there and stared after her. She only let those kinds of words come out of her when she was especially angry or hurt. Link was willing to bet that right now she was a little of both.

 _"You're a fucking hypocrite."_

Link knew he was, but hearing it out loud from her felt like being sucker punched. He had given her Hell for sleeping with someone else 7 months ago, torn their lives apart only to try and put it all back together again before he himself went and had sex with someone else too. Was what he did cheating? He hadn't thought so because he had never told Christy everything was okay, but...hadn't he told her he would try? Hadn't he moved back home?

He trailed behind her at a distance, stopping in the doorway of the room when he saw her small frame huddle on the bed. He heard her sniffle, and his heart stopped beating. For the first time, Link felt genuinely sorry; sorry for Christy's pain, sorry for causing it, and sorry that he wasn't willing to do whatever it took to fix this thing between them, especially after spending the night with Noah.

"Chris..." he started.

"No." It was a simple statement, but it stopped him in his tracks. She swiped at her eyes before standing to face him. "I don't want to do this now. You, you were right."

He stepped into the room, his suitcase catching his eye. She had finished packing for him as she'd always done.

"Christy I'm sorry," he reached for her, just to feel contact after not for so long.

She yanked her arm away, turning to throw something else into her suitcase.

"Can I ask you a favor?" She asked, back to him and ignoring his apology.

"Course you can," he replied, crossing to his own suitcase.

"Can you...not, not tell anyone about this? About, about us?"

Her voice was small as she continued.

"My Mama and Daddy don't, they...well, I didn't tell them we still been havin' problems and I don't wanna over Christmas. I just, I want...no, I _need_ to feel normal for a while."

Link let her request dance around in his head for a minute. He had told his family a while ago what had happened but as far as anyone knew at this point he and Christy had been doing better since he lived back at home. He himself had just been praying for some sense of normalcy even for just a second, but...

"I'm stayin' at hotel," he quipped, "won't they know somethin' ain't right?"

"Cancel it," she pleaded, finally meeting his eye. "Link, I can't face my family knowin' my marriage is fallin' apart, not before we come to any decisions of our own. Please."

He didn't hesitate for a second in agreeing to her terms. He owed her that, he supposed.

"Thank you," she whispered.

He moved to close his suitcase, sipping up the large bag before moving into the closet to grab some clothes for travel. He planned on taking a shower, and he needed to be comfortable for their flight. Just as he moved toward the bathroom he heard her again.

"I'm mad as Hell at you, Link. I, I might hate you just as much as I love you."

He stopped and looked at her, eyebrows drawn over his eyes and mouth turned down. He thought they were going to move on for now.

She showed no emotion as she continued.

"I been workin' so hard to earn forgiveness that I never stood a chance gettin'. That ain't fair, and...and, and now it's me that'll never forgive you. That's it, that's all I got. We got a real conversation to have when we get home."

With that she nodded her head matter of fact, grabbed the handle of her suitcase, and dragged it through the door before throwing over her shoulder, "gotta leave in thirty minutes. Try not to be too long."

With that she was gone, door slamming behind her back.

Link stood in the bathroom doorway for too long, Christy's words rattling around in his brain. An icy cold trickle ran down his spine and spread to his fingers and toes, thousands of tiny needles stinging him at once. Christy had just warned him, in her own way, that she was done making nice and would fight him if needed. Finally he turned toward the shower, practicing his breathing before he collapsed on the floor.

What he wouldn't give to be back at Noah's, sleeping peacefully before he felt like his whole existence was threatened. The worst part was, for the first time, he thought it might actually be his fault...

* * *

Noah squinted against the light streaming through her open curtains, bathing her bedroom in bright yellows and whites. She blinked, allowing her eyes to adjust, before she rolled and stretched her body to ease the ache of her stiff muscles. She was in bed alone, but she had known she would be. Sitting up she reached over to grab the phone off her nightstand.

 _9:46 am_

Link would be boarding his plane soon, and she wondered how he was fairing since she certainly felt the repercussions of their night of next to no sleep. She didn't see any notifications from him, and she was just a little disappointed that after everything he had left without a goodbye.

She supposed it was for the best. They hadn't talked about what was going to happen next, and Link had 2 weeks of North Carolina and family matters to attend to. She needed to focus on packing for Pittsburgh, and they both needed time to think about what they wanted...or he needed time to consider what he wanted. She was almost positive she already knew from her standpoint.

With one last stretch, she pushed herself out of her bed, legs shaking briefly as she stood. She saw a little orange paw shoot under the door out to her bedroom and smiled at the demanding orange tabby mewing for her attention. She popped into the bathroom real quick, startling when she saw the large purple bruise left where her right shoulder met her neck. A smile played on her lips as her fingers danced across the mark. Between that and the ache between her legs, Noah had keepsakes to remind her of her night spent with Link.

Finishing up in the bathroom with a quick shower, she slipped into a pair of terrycloth shorts and a loose fit tee. Throwing her damp hair into a low bun she made her way into the open room, pausing when the smell of coffee wafted to her. She made a sideline to Dorito's area, filling her food dish and scratching the yellow fur of her head before making her way over to her coffee pot.

It was full, and sitting next to it on a plate was a blueberry muffin and a note. Noah picked up the piece of paper, smiling before she could even read the quick scrawl across the page.

 _Had to jet and you looked too peaceful to wake. Made coffee and brought you a muffin from the bakery next door. Enjoy! We'll talk soon and figure out what comes next. Thank you for everything. -L_

 _P.s. I'll miss you._

A warmth bloomed from her chest, extending and reaching toward all those places she had let go cool since the last time she had ever loved someone. Wait, love? She had just thought about love. Did she love him? She shouldn't. They weren't together and he had said last night nothing serious, but...but her heart...

He was sweet, even though he had his neurotic tendencies, and the way he made her feel was greater than she'd ever felt before. He opened himself up to her, listened to what she had to say, showed her gentleness and kindness in ways no one had. Noah couldn't get enough of his style, and his eyes. She had always kind of liked him, but in the past few months that had just grown and shifted. She needed to tread carefully, keep her head above water, but damn it was getting hard. Being with him was so easy when they could just forget about everything else.

 _Shit_. She was in love.

 **See what I mean? Part of you really feels for Christy, but the reality of infidelity and separation isn't cut and dry. I promise, things will work out in the end! Drop a comment or a kudos, thanks again! -HEX**


	13. The Nail

Link stared out the big bay window of his in-law's living room as the soft flakes fell outside. It was warm enough they melted as they hit the North Carolina ground, but he still stared at the beauty like he did every year after not seeing snow for so long. It was a couple of days before New Years and he was thoroughly and completely spent. Behind him he could hear the T.V. going, Christy's dad Mark was watching some hunting show with Christy's brother Trevor while Lincoln played his DS. Lily was on her phone somewhere in the house talking to her best friend back in California, and Lando was playing Minecraft on the old desktop in the corner. He could hear the women chatting in the kitchen to his left; Christy, her Mom, and her sister in law were laughing and drinking the eggnog left over from Christmas.

All around him were people he had known 15 years, and his kids and Jade ran around somewhere with Christy's family schnauzer Stewart. The house was warm and cozy, presents still scattered everywhere and Christmas lights twinkling in every corner. Most years Link would be in the old lazy boy opposite his father in law, drinking a beer and napping off and on but...

He was restless; coiled up and ready to spring at any moment. Every small unexpected noise startled him and he felt like a stranger in a house full of people that he loved. He knew that Christy's family didn't know anything happening between the two of them but every time he made eye contact with someone he was sure they suspected something. He and Christy weren't functioning like a well-oiled machine. They had, in years past, rotated around one another seamlessly, an effortless array of non-verbal's from being married for so long. This year was so different, even though they had been sharing a bed again for the first time since Christy's infidelity.

It had felt almost normal, lying there next to Christy. For just a minute he had pretended like everything was alright and this wasn't their last trip home together for the holidays. The thought had been fleeting, and then it was gone as soon as it had drifted through. Things weren't normal, and they never would be again.

Link felt his phone vibrate in his pocket briefly, a small smile forming on his lips as he pulled the phone out and saw her text.

They had been chatting most days, neither of them able to resist at least asking how the other's day had been. She made everything a little better, even when he felt trapped and pinned by anxiety. There was a thrill about texting her, something inside Link he hadn't felt in a long time...something he had never felt.

 _N- '9:40pm- It's boring not having work every day...'_

Link typed out his agreement, fingers lingering over the keys before adding...

 _L- '9:42pm- ...that's because I don't get to see you though ;)'_

He was taking a bit of a risk being so bold, but after what they had done he was feeling audacious. She was rarely off his mind, always there some way or another. Her golden red locks shiny and around her head like a halo, green eyes wide and doe-like, mouth pouty and bottom lip dimpled between her pearly white teeth...Link sighed, low and slow before the vibration pulled him back.

 _N '9:45pm- Do you want to see me?'_

His response was quick, of course, he did and he let her know that.

It had been well over a week since he had seen her and he was starting to feel like a piece of himself was lost. She grounded him, kept him present, and made all the bad stuff seem better just by being there. He missed her. He truly, honestly, with every fiber of his being missed her. They'd spent nearly every day together for over three months and damn it, _he missed her._

His phone vibrated again, a huge grin splitting his face when a picture of her popped up when he opened the text. The little smile on her lips hid the gap between her two front teeth, but her lips were still as kissable as ever. She didn't have an ounce of makeup on and he could see the light sprinkle of freckles across the bridge of her nose, and her hair was soft and straighter than she normally wore it. The silky strands were practically begging for him to run his fingers through them...

"Dad?"

Link startled, clicking off his phone quickly as he felt it vibrate again against his palm. He looked into the blue eyes of his oldest son.

"Mom said we gotta go to bed, just wanted to say night."

Link smiled at Lincoln, slipping his phone in his pocket as he stood and started leading the boy toward the hall.

"How 'bout I come say g'night to everyone, huh?"

Lincoln just shrugged, letting his father keep a hand on his shoulder.

Link glanced toward the kitchen when he caught Christy leaning against the frame, arms crossed and a glass of wine pressed against her lips. He wondered briefly when she had switched to wine, knowing that she would almost certainly have a headache in the morning. She eyed him as he disappeared down the hall and the glaze in her eyes that he was familiar with. She was drunk, and there was something on her mind.

Link pulled his sky blue eyes from her grey-blue ones, focusing on the task at hand. Whatever Christy had going on in her alcohol-soaked brain would have to wait. He just hoped that there wouldn't be a scene here, at her family's house, where he would most certainly be seen as the bad guy. He sighed, following Lincoln into the room where Lando was already curled up on his little cot.

Goodnights went seamlessly, Lily getting to stay up longer with her grandpa, before Link popped into the room he was staying in. He shut the door quietly behind him, hoping not to garner any unwanted attention. Running a hand through his hair with a huff, briefly wondering where Christy was in the house, Link sat on the corner of the bed.

He pulled his phone back out, smiling again when her picture stayed on his screen when he unlocked it. He smiled wider when he saw her next message telling him it was his turn. Link wasn't much of a selfie man, preferring pictures that were taken of him by someone else, but he could manage. He had just sent her the picture he had taken when she took him by surprise.

"You textin' your whore?"

He flinched, her words making his heart beat hard and his hands shake worse than normal. He wondered how long she had been standing there, wondered how she'd even snuck in the room so quietly in her current state. He heard the lilt to her voice; the telltale sign that the drink had her. He only glanced over his shoulder at her, opting to stay seated. He didn't want to engage in whatever game she was trying to play.

"You're drunk," he stated simply. Looking back down at his hands, fiddling with his phone.

"'N your tex'ing that ssstupid girl," she slurred.

Link felt the heat creep into his cheeks, "she ain't stupid."

"You admit it 'en? Y-your textin' her?"

He hadn't looked at her yet, but he could imagine her in his mind, swaying at the foot of the bed with her face twisted in anger. Christy was feisty when she drank, almost mean at her best.

"Yeah," he gave her, "I'm, I'm textin' her..."

The glass hit the wall and shattered close enough that he was sprayed with shards of glass.

"What the fuck Christy!?" He yelped, hopping off the bed and spinning to meet her glare.

"You sonofabitch!" She was too loud, reaching for a picture on the dresser and slinging it his general direction but missing him by a few feet as it crashed against a vase, tipping it over and spilling water onto the surface of the little desk.

"Christy calm down!" He tried, holding his hands out in surrender.

He wanted to scream. He wanted to yell and fight, but Christy was drunk and had fire boiling in her veins. They were feet from her family and he would lose.

"Y-you," she hiccupped, "you fucked her...you fucked her 'n I been over here raisin' our kids'n, _damnit Link_ you ruin'd our whole, our-our whole marriage!"

"Christy you had an affair with David long before I even thought about another woman."

Link knew his face was flushed, heat creeping up his neck and his fists starting to curl. She was out of control, this was not the time, and he needed to leave but she was blocking the door. How no one had heard her fit a minute ago was beyond him.

Well, if they hadn't heard her before they sure were going to hear her this time.

"Yeah, I fucked David!" She howled, her voice loud and heavy. "'N guess wha? I don't regret it. I wanna do it again. He fucked me better 'n you ever have!"

His flush turned hot enough to burn, his head spinning. When the knock sounded on the door behind her, cutting him off before he could reply, he heard her Mom's soft voice float through the heavy oak. He couldn't breathe. He hoped she would stop, but Christy wasn't done yet. She sniffled, stepping closer to him and the wall that had been driving them further apart.

"She'n _have_ you," Christy spat, "She'n take you away, Link, but you ain't _ever_ gettin' my kids."

He felt his eye twitch, then his jaw, then his fingers. He fought every reflex in his body that was telling him to fight back. He heard her Mom's soft voice again, threatening to come in if her daughter didn't tell her everything was okay. Christy just glared at him, her eyes glazed and a slight sway in the way she tried to stand tall against his even taller frame. He felt it, just as the door clicked open; this would be war.

The next few minutes were a blur. The bedroom door flinging open when no one answered and both of Christy's parents were there, rushing to aid their daughter against the monster they assumed had broken glass against their walls. Her brother had rushed in next and yelled at him, screamed and threatened him, pushing his shoulder and knocking him into the desk the water had soaked. Christy had started to sob and he had no idea what was happening. He could've sworn he heard Lando crying somewhere as he was accused of things they knew nothing about and forced out of the house.

Everything moved so fast around him. North Carolina was where things slowed down, and now all of a sudden he had lost everything and found himself sitting in his rental car in a parking lot. His family's house was over an hour away and he was in no condition to drive. Not that he wanted to face Sue and Lewis right now, because that meant facing what had just happened and he had barely just begun processing the situation. They had kicked him out, not letting him get a word in edgewise while Christy broke down in an alcohol-induced mess on the floor.

His own eyes were pink, lined with red and glossed over with tears. He smacked the steering wheel once, twice, a third time for good measure before the dam broke and the sobs choked out of him uncontrollably. He cried. He cried hard, and he cried long; shoulders shaking and lungs burning. He pulled his phone out after a while to check the time. She had texted him back, but he bypassed her notification to bring up Rhett's contact information.

"What's up buddyroll?" The big man answered almost immediately.

"R-Rhett..." Link croaked, his emotions betraying him.

"Link? What's wrong?" Rhett's tone had changed immediately, the concern rolling off his tongue.

"Everything," Link managed, pinching the bridge of his nose to try and control himself.

"Sh, it's okay. Breath, Link. Tell me what happened..." Rhett said something to who Link assumed was Jessie before he heard the soft 'thud' of a door through the phone.

He took a shaky breath, swallowing the lump in his throat before he launched into the story. He didn't leave out a single detail, not willing to break his promise to never lie again. He told Rhett about sleeping with Noah, how Christy had known, how they had tried to be a normal family for the holidays and how bad they had failed. He had managed some semblance of control and by the end, his voice had stopped trembling even if his cheeks were still wet with salty tears. He finished with what had just happened before Rhett let out a low whistle.

"...and now you're sittin' in the parking lot of Walmart talkin' to me." It was a statement, not a question.

"I don't know what to do, Rhett. I feel, I...it feels like I'm dyin'."

His voice broke again and he realized the weight of his words. It hurt worse than he could've ever imagined. Being thrown to the wolves, having no time to prepare for this even though he knew it needed to happen sometime...this wasn't how he had imagined their separation.

"I know it feels that way, but you're not dyin' brother and you need to figure out what your gonna do..."

"...she said she's takin' my kids..."

"...she can't take 'em, Link. You're a damn good dad and she's got nothin' on ya that'll make it seem any different."

"I, I slept with..."

"...so did she," Rhett interrupted. "When did sex make someone a bad parent?"

Link let the words roll around his head for a minute. It didn't make him a bad dad, and it honestly hadn't made Christy a bad mom. Them sleeping with other people didn't mean they loved their kids any less and he knew that it just made it harder for them to see clearly.

"Look," the bigger man continued, "I know this hurts. I can hear how bad in the way you're talkin', but you deserve to be happy and you ain't been in a long time."

"I know, I...I thought I could be, ya know? Noah, she's..."

She was too good for him; too understanding, too kind, and too beautiful in every way. She had been more than willing to step back, even after a night spent together. Christy had always pushed him. She had never accepted him needed time and space to clear his head, so when Noah hadn't argued in the slightest he had been grateful. She just _was_...

"You still can be, bo'. I know it seems like I been colder toward her..."

"...you have been..."

"...but I haven't seen you happier in years. That's gotta mean somethin'."

Link sniffed, wiping at his face with the hand not holding his phone. It did have to mean something, and he acknowledged that. He told Rhett about the night he had spent with the pretty redhead, about the conversation they had shared and how he had told her he was leaving Christy. Then he told him about his decision to leave in the first place. Link's voice grew stronger the longer he talked, confidence slowly returning.

"Why you still sittin' in the parking lot?" Rhett asked, challenging the brunette.

"I, what d'ya mean?"

"Where she from? Somewhere in Pennsylvania?"

"Pittsburgh..."

"Alright, go there then."

Link heard him, but he couldn't answer. Go? To Pittsburgh? He hadn't even considered that an option. Would that make things worse? Better? Would it be weird for Noah if he showed up? He voiced his concerns to Rhett.

"Christy can't take the kids, Link. You're in a bad spot right now, and you need a break. Just for a day or two. I'll cover for ya if it makes it better, just got n' see her, man. She makes you feel better."

"Yeah," Link agreed, letting the idea bounce around as it grew bigger. "She really does."

"Gettin' laid again can't hurt either..."

"Oh shut up, this is why I don't tell you things." He meant what he said, but he smirked.

"I know, but listen, when y'all get back we're gonna need to sit down and talk about this. She works for us, this could be a conflict of interest n' we gotta figure out what that means."

"I know, I, I've thought about that. I just never thought it might be a real thing I'd have to consider."

"Well, it is, n' that ain't a bad thing. Just one day at a time. You'll do what ya gotta for your family. It'll be hard, n' it'll be long...might even get a little messy but you ain't alone n' you can be happy."

"I don't even know how..."

"Just call her, Link. Go for a day or two 'n then go back, talk to your Mom, talk to Christy, figure this shit out n' live your life man."

Link's eyes filled again; he loved Rhett. He kept him grounded and he brought him back to reality when things felt like they were too much to bear. He thanked the big man, confirming that he would need him to cover for a couple of days if anyone asked. Christy might already think she knew everything but he didn't need to confirm her suspicions right now while things were still so shattered. He would need to keep it to himself, for now anyway.

Link didn't think this was his smartest idea, well it was Rhett's idea really, especially after the drama he had just endured, but he wasn't one who always stayed safe anyway. He often said or did things he regret, he just hoped this wouldn't be one of those things.

Hanging up with his best friend after a few more minutes, Link finally looked at the text from Noah in response to his selfie.

 _N- '10:06pm- I can't love that picture more! Too bad I couldn't see it for real!'_

Followed by another one she must have just sent while he was on the phone with Rhett.

 _N- '10:43pm- Hey, sorry if that was weird. Hope everything's okay!'_

Link smiled, scrolling back to look at the picture she had sent him and bloom of warmth started to blossom in his chest. He loved her. He couldn't deny it anymore. He had known he was falling for her but he had hit the ground running at this point. Seeing her face, even in a picture, was enough to make the fight worth it. She was worth it. Love was worth it.

His finger lingered over the call button for only a second before hitting it and bringing the phone to his ear, his eyes still shiny. This was it. This was the nail in the coffin that was his marriage and it _had_ to be worth it.

"Link?" Her voice was small, unsure why he was calling but sing-song and lovely all the same.

"Yeah, hey...I got somethin' kind crazy to ask you."

There was a brief silence before a small laugh on the other end, there went his heart again.

"Well, go ahead and ask then," he could hear her smile through the phone.

"What are you doing tomorrow?"


	14. Steel City: Part 1

**WARNING: ADULT THEMES!**

Link stared out of the window of his uber as they crossed over a yellow bridge, a wide river flowing beneath them glistening in the lights. He glanced behind them, tall skyscrapers disappearing as they left the bridge in favor of a smaller bit of the city that was sprawling with shops, bars, and restaurants that were still open at this late hour. He had been impressed with Pittsburgh, never having been here before. It was vastly different than most of the other cities he had been to and he made a mental note to see as much of it in the daytime as he could in the two days he would be here. He was sure the snow he had seen sticking would be glistening in the sun come morning.

Turning back around, Link felt the nerves starting to creep into his hands that were already shaking. It could also be the coffee he had gotten at the Raleigh airport on instinct, not bothering with it being a red eye and a flight just over an hour long. Link was exhausted. In a matter of 4hours he had gone from relaxing at his in-laws to being forcefully thrown out, emotionally drained, and then momentarily pieced back together enough to hop on a plane at midnight and arrive in a new city at almost 2 am.

His eyelids were heavy when the uber stopped in front of a row of townhouses with people walking along the sidewalks, yelling and being rowdy. He was aware now that this must be a party spot and he hoped the noise wouldn't be too much trouble. At this point, he was tired enough it probably didn't matter and he was just lucky he had found this place at all on such short notice.

The Air BnB was really nice, and much to his content, the noise outside was muffled significantly when he was inside. He quickly moved through the small living room into the kitchen and dining room, dumping his coat onto the back of a chair. He moved up the two narrow steps into the bedroom, tossing his bag in the corner before reaching over his head and grabbing the cloth of his shirt between his shoulder blades and pulling the fabric and his glasses off in one movement. His boots were next.

He needed a hot shower and some glorious sleep. Noah had been getting ready to go see some friends when he had called her, but she had been excited that he was coming to visit. She had agreed to meet him at his Air BnB in the morning and take him around the city a bit. Slipping his thumbs into the waistband of his briefs, he lowered his pants and underwear to the ground before wearily standing and hopping in the steamy shower.

His muscles immediately relaxed, he was grateful. He would need to be well rested tomorrow to keep up with Noah. He smiled against the hot stream of water as he thought about her, and how she had talked about all of the things she wanted to do with him in her hometown. It was all easy with her, not stressful and difficult at all. She let him breathe; she was like fresh air and just knowing he was in the same area code as she made his troubles slip to the back of his mind.

He knew he was in some shit now, and that he'd left a whole mess of trouble back in North Carolina. He felt like he was running away from it all, and maybe he was a little, but he was allowed to do what he needed to do to clear his head. Christy's family hated him now, or so it felt, and his Mom didn't even know he'd left the state. His Dad had even come in from Myrtle Beach and none of them knew what had transpired tonight. He would make some phone calls in the morning, but for now, he needed to get some shut eye and put this whole night behind him.

He had just dried off and slipped into a fresh pair of boxer briefs when a soft knock sounded on the front door. Link paused, not even sure he had heard it in the first place but sure enough after a couple of minutes the same soft rasp sounded off. Link glanced at his phone, frowning when he saw it was after 2:30 before slipping a pair of plaid lounge pants up around his hips and padded to the front door.

Peeking through the blinds, he saw her. He moved quick, unbolting the front door and pulling it open. She stood there, wrapped in an olive pea coat with massive fluffy ear muffs hiding half of her auburn locks. Her breath steamed the air puffing out of her lips, painted a deep shade of red, and her green eyes shone bright and shiny, lined with thick black lashes and liner winged at the corners. Her legs were wrapped in black tights that disappeared into the black ankle booties she wore with some of the tallest heels he had ever seen in person.

Noah was _stunning_ , and she was standing at his door at almost 3 am looking up at him with those eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said, pulling her red lip between her teeth and letting it pop out before continuing. "I, I couldn't wait. I know we said we would hang out in the morning but I, I didn't want to wait that long."

She bounced on her heels, her eyes searching his face for _anything_ saying she needed to leave as her confidence wavered in the face of her brazen move.

Link stared at her, hardly believing she was here after nearly two weeks without her. His heart swelled inside his chest.

"I had my friends drop me off," she spoke again when he had just stood there, motioning in the general direction they had driven off. "I hope that's okay..."

He was becoming more aware of the cold air hitting his bare chest, but he was still taken back by her just showing up that he couldn't move. Of course, it was okay. It was more than okay, it was what he had hoped for and he hadn't even known it until she turned up.

"I can go..." she started when he realized he had just been standing there staring at her this whole time.

Her bottom lip pulling between her teeth, the white enamel sinking into the red. Link found himself still staring at how wonderful she was, remembering the last moment he saw her before right now; naked and sleeping soundly among billowy down comforters and pillows, her skin smooth and creamy.

"Link?"

He finally found his voice, the sound of her saying his name jolting him out of his stupor.

"I missed you." He stated simply, blinking at her as she danced around a bit and blew heat onto her hands.

It was at that moment he realized it was absolutely freezing outside.

"Oh, gosh!" He exclaimed, stepping back and gesturing to his temporary dwelling. "Come inside, it's freezing out there!"

Her face softened, her eyes crinkling at the corners as her red pout spread into a wide grin. Link felt his resolve to get sleep melt away when her scent wafted to him as she breezed past him, bringing the chill of the air with her. He turned to shut and lock the door, starting to ask her how her night had been when he felt her coat covered arms, chilled by the night air, wrap around his torso.

"I missed you too," she whispered as he turned all the way, gathering her in his arms and hanging on to her like she might actually slip away from him.

He smiled against the fluff of her ear muffs, reaching up to remove the oversized headwear and tossing it on the couch before burying his nose in her hair. Her heels gave her height she hadn't had around him ever, and she teetered against him.

"You're so cold," he said, squeezing her tighter.

She hummed her agreement, snuggling further against his bare skin, "I'm getting warmer."

They embraced for another minute before his arms finally loosened from around her and she stepped back to shed her coat. Link couldn't help but stare, his mouth going dry. Her dress fit her like a second skin, hugging every curve of her body and riding dangerously high on her thighs. Her legs looked impossibly long in her black tights, which he assumed she wore for warmth, and the heels gave her at least 4 inches. Even the way she toe'd them off, stretching up onto the balls of her feet before wiggling her toes in relief.

It was like seeing her for the first time all over again, now that he acknowledged he loved her. _He loved her_. He could just watch her forever, moving around the room to hang her coat near his and set her shoes by the door like this was her Air BnB instead of his. He didn't mind, her level of comfort around him having grown but her sense of ease as simple and effortless as it always had been.

"I'm sorry it's so late," she turned to him, noticing his hair was wet and tussled.

He looked so good, standing there with the band of his boxer briefs poking above low slung pajama pants. His chest was bare, spackled with dark hair. She picked up on his clean scent, and couldn't decide if she liked it or not because it was missing that element that made Link, Link. He looked so good though she moved past that in favor of appreciating him with a new sense of investment.

They hadn't said more than a few words to one another, but the air around them was heavy with implications. She could see it in his eyes, in the way they stared back at her and in the way the hair on her arms stood as his gaze sent shivers over her skin. She loved this man; this man that had traveled on a red-eye to get to her. He was here, in Pittsburgh, after not seeing one another in almost 2 weeks, and now he was standing in front of her. She realized that she had no idea what had made him decide to come in the first place.

"Why did you come here?" She asked, both of them still keeping their distance like they hadn't just been locked in an embrace.

He shrugged a shoulder, "I needed to get out. I, somethin' happened and..."

"No," she cut him off with a little shake of her head. "I mean, why are you _here_ , here."

Link took a deep breath, his Adam's apple bobbing briefly. He knew what she was asking; knew that she wanted him to say it, and that he couldn't even if he wanted to...and he _did_ want to.

Instead, he squared his shoulders and pulled up the corner of his mouth in a smirk that made her knees weak.

"You know why," he opted for instead, pleading with her to just understand.

She did.

"Me, me too..." she answered, fingers playing with the hem of her tiny skirt.

Link's whole world stopped spinning. They weren't the three words that were usually said at a moment like this, but they held the same meaning and were weighted between them like a pendulum; swaying back and forth on their heartbeats. He knew he had thought it before, knew he had accepted it, but now he knew there was truly no going back. He was in, all in, and he was _in love with her_.

"Come here," he said on a breath, watching her like a panther as she quickly made her way to him.

Noah felt the predatory change in the way he looked at her, and it made her spine tingle right down to the heat between her legs. She crossed the room in just a few strides, her hands finding his as he reached for her and pulled her smaller frame against his larger one. Then his mouth found hers in a searing kiss, bending at the waist to meet her.

Link's mouth moved against Noah's confidently, devouring her in a way that burned her up from the inside out. The way his hands moved against her lithe frame, gliding down over the curve of her bum, made her arch into his palm in a manner begging him to touch her more. He listened to her body and grasped her ass, pulling her even tighter against him. Their kiss grew more intense, their bodies wrapped around one another as they swayed in a way threatening to topple them over.

Link broke away first, kissing a trail down her neck and her shoulder, mouthing the cloth of her dress while her hands found his hair. He found the zipper running down her spine, quickly pulling it down to reveal her velvety skin underneath. He ran his tongue along the knob of her collarbone as the dress hit the ground. She stepped out of the garment letting him go to hook the tights at her waist and push them down her legs. Link stepped back, glancing down to appreciate her body. His lower abdomen twitched when he saw the smooth emerald thong she wore and strapless bra in the same color.

She looked cocky when she caught the way his eyes glazed while they raked over her.

"Panty lines," she smirked, stepping back into his bubble and running her hands over his oblique's and up to his shoulders.

Link's second wind hit him in the groin, a groan slipping from between his teeth as he reached for her again. They were all hands, all over one another as they moved toward the couch. Link lost his pajama bottoms along the way, and Noah's bra had been tossed half-hazard somewhere near the T.V. Noah felt her back hit the firmer cushion of the sofa, Link's body lowering over hers and pressing her body into the pillow. His hips rolled against hers, the thin fabric of their underthings providing nothing in the way of separating the heat flooding through them.

Noah's fingernails dug into Link's shoulders as their tongues battled for dominance; back and forth, pushing and pulling. She dragged her nails down his back, eliciting a feral growl from him as he sunk his teeth into the crook of her neck. She gasped, squeezing her legs around him and arching her bare chest against his. They moved immediately, Noah reaching to push Link's briefs down his legs, using her feet when she couldn't reach with her hands anymore before going to her own panties when he stood to push the material of his underwear down and off the rest of the way.

Every nerve in Link was alive and roaring to life as Noah lay naked, her beautiful pale skin soft and supple with a beautiful gathering of short, well-trimmed hair between her legs just begging him to touch it. Noah yelped when he grabbed her ankle, giving it a short tug until she was on the edge of the couch before dropping to his knees. His mouth met hers again, brief but deep, before gently pushing her knees apart. When his mouth left hers, and he started placing open mouth kisses along the insides of her thighs, Noah groaned and leaned back into the couch.

Link loved the way she tasted, felt, moved, smelt...everything about her, this girl he loved, drove him crazy in the best ways possible. Her fingers combed through his hair, tightening when he dove in and found her clit with his tongue, sucking it into his mouth and releasing it with a 'pop' before pressing back against her and flicking the pressure point over and over.

He worked her with his tongue, licking up and down and all around. His fingers moved up to toy with her hole, teasing the opening with soft strokes before his middle and ring fingers dipped inside to the knuckles. Noah's hips started to rotate against his face, his fingers scissoring inside of her and massaging the soft tissue of her walls. It wasn't long before she started mumbling obscenities, her eyes shut and her brow furrowed.

"Mm, I'mma cum Link," she forced out as her moaning got louder.

Link pressed his face into her, lapping and sucking at every part of her. He loved this. He loved bringing her here, but he wanted to feel her on him; wanted to feel her squeeze and cum on his cock. With everything in him he pulled back abruptly, garnering a wanton groan from her as he hooked his hands under her knees and tugged her off the couch onto his thighs. She let out a small "oof" as she landed, but found his mouth quickly as he pushed off his haunches and raised them both off the ground.

Noah loved tasting herself on his tongue, almost desperate to inhale the taste because it turned her on. She was still so close, her body breaking out into a light sheen of sweat when she felt her knees hit the cushions on either side of his slender hips. They worked fast, aligning his rock hard length before he pushed up into her as she pushed down. He entered her to the hilt in one swift motion, sitting deep and thick inside her.

"Fuck!" She gasped, her head falling back as the waves of pleasure coursed through her and she clamped down on him. Wave after wave as he started to move, fighting against the tight hold of her contracting muscles. His mouth found the sensitive skin under her jaw and her arms held him tight and snug against her as she rocked her hips and came fast and hard.

Noah's lungs burned. She gasped for air, her hold loosening around him only to find the back of the couch to give her leverage as her hips started to bounce in time with his thrusting. Link sat back, appreciating the way her body moved and rolled in time with his and the way he slid in and out of her with the slick, slapping sound of their skin meeting. She was always beautiful, and he was always in awe of her, but when rode him she was downright perfection.

Link could feel himself getting closer, but he wasn't done yet. Something about knowing the way she felt about him made him feel deeper, almost possessive, and he wanted to be in control when he finally lost it. He wanted to make her lose it again too, right along with him.

In one motion he had gripped her hips hard enough to bruise before flipping her on her back. She let out a whine he found endearing before, "turn around." It was a command.

Noah felt his words in her core. His pupils were blown out and his manhood slick with her juices, hair sticking up in tufts where it wasn't stuck to the sweat on his forehead. He looked wild, and in control, and Noah would've done _anything_ for him if he'd asked. Quickly she got to her knees and turned around, sticking her ass out as she felt his hand travel over her curves as the cushion shifted behind her. His knee nudged at hers, spreading her legs wider as he got into position. She pushed against him, wanting him to fill her again when a sharp 'smack' ricocheted off her cheek and she keened.

"You like that?" He asked darkly, and she choked out a 'yes' just as another smack landed on her other cheek.

Link was all in now, pink dusting her pale flesh where his hand had made contact. His feral, commanding nature taking control as he let her have one more smack before plunging into her wet folds. They lamented together, long and low until he pulled out almost completely before slamming back inside of her. Noah gasped, Link hitting a spot of both extreme pleasure and a mix of pain as he landed deeper than he ever had before at this new angle. _She loved it._

He found a steady pace, slapping and bouncing against her ass as her head lowered to the cushion underneath them and she pushed back against him. Grunting and groaning, both of them filled the Air BnB with crude sounds. Link leaned forward, his weight on his left hand next to her shoulder while his right one curled around her hip and found her sweet spot, rubbing it with the same fingers that had penetrated her earlier.

Her head was sideways and through the hair he could see her chewing her bottom lip, whining as he picked up the pace one more time. The base of his spine tingled out into the tips of his toes and his balls started to tighten. His eyes closed as his head drooped and he began to lose the pattern of his ministrations, his hips starting to jerk erratically as he was about to cum. Just then Noah pushed up and arched into him, her hand coming up to grip his bicep as her mouth found his in a bruising kiss.

That was all it took.

Link lost all control as his hand working her came up to grab her breast, pressing into her deep and flattening his chest against her back as he came. Her muscles contracted again, milking him and drawing out shallow gasps of air. They panted against one another, hot breath puffing out and making them even warmer. Their skin was slick with sweat and after another minute, Link felt the weariness creeping back into his muscles as he sat back on the couch. It took Noah longer to come down, two orgasms making her stay on all fours while he appreciated the view from the angle he had of his handiwork.

Her buttocks was still reddened from where he spanked her, and for a brief moment, after coming out of the moment, he felt bad about it.

"You okay?" He asked her gently.

"Mhmm," was all she managed before she finally unwound and pushed up to a seated position. "I'm better than okay."

He smiled at the girl, her hair wild and untamed and her whole body flushed with afterglow. Her green eyes were hooded, and when Link glanced at the clock he couldn't believe that it was after 3:30 and he was still awake. His second wind all but disappeared as the exhaustion took over.

She read his mind, reaching for his hand as she stood. "Let's go to bed, we can talk in the morning."

"Let's plan for the afternoon," he quipped, taking hold of her offered grasp and standing on shaking legs to follow her to the bedroom, shutting off lights as he went.

She agreed, yawning as she disappeared into the bathroom while Link located the extra set of bedding they would need to change the sheets in the morning after they woke up and showered. Happy, he crawled into the bed stark naked and settled against the cool fabric. He was so relaxed he had hardly heard her come back into the room but felt her weight shift the mattress next to him. He didn't even open his eyes, but reached for her and pulled her against him, her back against his chest again, before he draped his arm around her waist.

That was the last thing he remembered before falling into the deepest sleep he'd had in months.

 **Be sure to leave me a comment if you like the story! I'm a sucker for love ;)**


	15. Steel City: Part 2

**Chapter Song- Delicate: Taylor Swift**

Link stared at his left hand for a long time, sipping the coffee he had made and picking at the bag of chips he had left over from his flight the night before. The silver of his wedding band glinted in the sunlight streaming through the little kitchen window behind him, a flashy reminder of the past 15 years of his life. He thumbed the band, a habit of his, twisting it around the finger that Christy had slipped it on the day they'd gotten married.

He had thought about this moment for a long time; when the urge would hit him and the moment was right, but he'd never dreamt it would happen like this. He'd never thought it would happen under these circumstances, with things getting messier by the minute. Last night had been one of the worst of his life, but he had never been so sure about anything before.

With a deep, slow breath, Link pulled the band off, holding it between two fingers before laying it on the wooden table with a small 'tap'. His finger looked naked, his hand looked foreign without the piece of jewelry and he couldn't help but study the pale strip of skin under where the ring had sat. He had thought it would kill him, make his heart seize up and knock the winds from within his lungs but...he felt fine. In fact, Link felt like a weight had been lifted from his chest, or from his finger.

He closed his eyes, taking one more deep breath before cracking his bare knuckles and a small smile.

He had called his Mom when he had woken up, told her everything but where he was and who he was with, and dealt with her questions and concerns. It wasn't that he didn't want to tell her about Noah, but they hadn't talked about what they were yet and this whole thing seemed so fragile, so new.

He supposed they were sleeping together, at the very least, but they had professed their feelings for one another the night before in the only way they knew how and everything had shifted. His being with someone other than Christy was a very real possibility and even though he needed some time, if it meant losing Noah he would reconsider everything.

Just thinking of the redhead still asleep in the other room made his chest buzz with warmth. The fact that she'd shown up because she couldn't stay away, the fact that she'd missed him, admitted she all but loved him, had been his rock and shining star for months, it all made him dizzy in the best ways and everything worth it. He had been hit with this realization that she was real, that she was what his heart had always needed and even though the timing was off, he was beyond grateful he had found it at all.

Yeah, he would eventually tell his Mom about Noah, the world if he could. He was sure of it. The girl was his future if she wanted to be, and _boy_ did he hope she wanted to be.

The soft groan of a person stretching awake in the other room caught his attention and he looked toward the open doorway in front of him before checking his phone for the time. It was almost 11:00, and he saw the text notification from Christy glaring at him in a faded notification box over the clock. His confidence, the strength he had felt, it all faltered just a little as his thumb hovered over the text box before clicking it open. He couldn't avoid this; couldn't avoid her and what had happened.

 _C '10:57am- I know you won't answer if I call. Sue told me you went back to California until tomorrow, and then she told me I should be ashamed of myself. We need to talk. The kids keep asking me about you and I made a mess of everything. Call me. Please.'_

Link threw the phone on the table, heat flaring up his neck to his head.

 _No shit you made a mess of everything._

He was mad that she had used the kids to make him feel bad, and then she hadn't even said she was sorry. She eluded she might've been, but damnit she hadn't said it. He couldn't call her right now, he wouldn't. He _wouldn't_. He didn't want to fight on the phone, this was so much bigger than that, and he needed some time to just be alone right now.

"Morning," her sing-song voice floated toward him as she came down the short steps into the kitchen, her smiling face freshly washed and his shirt from yesterday buttoned and hanging _just_ over her hips.

Well, he needed to spend this time _almost_ alone.

"Hey, sleepyhead," he replied.

"Sleepyhead? I'm sorry someone kept me awake way past my bedtime last night," she chided, stretching onto her toes with her arms above her head.

Link caught a glimpse of the bottom of her bum, a flashback to the spanks he had placed on it the night before. He smiled appreciatively.

"Didn't hear you comlpainin' then," he mumbled, sipping his coffee and tossing her a teasing glance.

She pulled that bottom lip he loved to taste between her teeth and let go a cheeky smile, a light blush dusting the bridge of her nose.

She shrugged a slim shoulder, "that makes two of us got nothin' to complain about."

They shared a look, smiles playing at the corners of their mouths. Her eyes bounced between his as he stood and crossed to her all of a sudden, his big hands sliding up her neck and his fingers burying in her untamed hair. He tipped her head back gently, placing a soft kiss at the corner of her mouth.

"I could never complain if it's 'bout you," he whispered earnestly, once again willing her to understand how much he cared for her.

He felt her smaller fingers dance up his sides and land on his biceps, wrapping up in the fabric of his tee shirt and tugging him toward her. She kissed him soft and deep, tilting her head and holding him against her. One of his hands slid down to her waist as one of hers gripped the back of his neck and their kiss deepened. Link felt light-headed. He felt like he could topple over at any minute.

Then he heard a gurgle and felt the vibrations ricocheted through his hand on her waist.

Link pulled back, a look of amusement on his face.

"Was, was that your stomach?" He asked, humor in his tone.

Her cheeks flushed the prettiest shade of pink but she chuckled, "yeah. Apparently, it doesn't want me wasting any more time not feeding it."

"That what we're doin'? Wastin' time?"

Noah saw the dare in his eyes; the glint that told her she was pushing his buttons. She had seen it before when he was being particularly playful or, as she learned last night when he was feeling dominant. She saw the tip of his tongue dart out and swipe over his bottom lip and a shiver goosed over her arms and down her legs.

She pulled him back in, her lips hovering just over his, "it's never wasting time when it's with you," she echoed his earlier sentiment.

He moved then, pushing into her and finding her hair again. He angled her head back, deepening the kiss which she reciprocated by pushing up onto her toes. Link blew a hot stream of air through his nostrils and a deep groan sounded from his throat as Noah sucked his tongue into her mouth.

Then it happened again; the grumble in her belly and reminder it was getting late in the morning.

He smiled against her lips, "guess we gotta listen to it or it'll keep interruptin'."

"Yeah, I guess. Rain check?"

"You know it," Link replied, one more kiss before releasing her from his grasp.

"I need to shower and change before we go anywhere," she started, absentmindedly.

Link flashed her a grin, "I like you in my shirt."

She matched his smirk, fingers playing with the buttons along the front, "what about when I'm not in it?"

"Don't start what you can't finish," Link challenged, an eyebrow arching over the dark rim of his glasses.

"Oh, I can finish," she teased him, popping a button.

Link was impressed at her boldness; her unwavering energy just wrapped him around her little finger.

"You naughty girl," he mumbled, wanting to take her right here in the kitchen.

The only thing stopping him was his own hunger and the innate need to take care of the little woman beaming up at him.

"You just wait 'till we get back here tonight," Link threatened.

"Looking forward to it."

She didn't miss a beat, turning on her heel to grab a glass from the cupboard and stretching her lithe frame purposefully to show off her best assets. Link chuckled, shaking his head and turning to move into the bedroom to start his morning routine since there was no risk of interrupting her sleep anymore.

The rest of their morning went by without incident. Noah bounced into the bedroom when Link was getting ready to hop in the shower to kiss him before she caught her uber back to her mom's for a change of clothes and an overnight bag. Link was a little disappointed she wasn't joining him, but she promised to be back soon.

He dressed warmly; dark jeans disappearing into his winter boots and red and black flannel buttoned to the top. The fur around the hood of his green jacket helped to combat the cold, but Link couldn't believe how the chill managed to creep in anyway. When Noah had returned she was in black again, her boots loaded with fuzz that matched her earmuffs. Her black coat had some volume to it, slipped over a charcoal grey sweater made from thick knit material. Even cozy and clad in thick material, Link thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world.

That thought had hit him all day. When she laughed, when she smiled, when she told him all about Pittsburgh and what she loved about it, Link found himself staring at her. He wanted to tell her, no, he _needed_ to tell her that he loved her. He needed her to hear it, and he found himself almost letting the words tumble out. They had flirted with one another in a carefree way and Link didn't find himself thinking about the trouble back home at all.

She had shown him all around her hometown, finally stopping at a little diner for dinner as the sun started to set...

"...that's how my Mom justified it not bein' plagiarized, I swear!" Link laughed, grabbing his mug off the shiny dinor table and bringing it to his lips. He got a kick out of if every time he told the story of winning the fourth-grade drug poster contest.

Noah leaned her head against her palm, grinning and letting the fingers of her other hand pick at the buttered roll in front of her.

"Mhmm, sure," she mumbled. "Winning felt pretty good though, huh?".

Link stuck his tongue out, swiping the roll and taking a big bite.

"Hey!" She squeaked, mocking offense before snatching the peanut butter pie he had ordered.

Noah couldn't believe how lucky she was, watching the man before her face light up with laughter. Link was attractive, but sometimes his eyes made him look so much older and worn out, especially lately. Not when he laughed though. When he laughed, the blue irises sparkled brighter than the California sky. She didn't realize she had stopped and was staring at him.

"What?" He asked, hand skimming across the table to pull the pie back toward himself.

She smiled softly, green eyes taking in as much of him as she could. Something had happened in the few months they had been spending together. Something had changed. It was so much more than attraction. It was more than anything she had ever felt before, more than she ever had imagined and it was real and sudden and had smashed down her walls regardless.

"What?" He asked again, softer this time, palm coming to rest against her hand on the table.

She flipped her hand, fingers lacing his, "nothing...I just, I'm lucky."

Something shone from behind his eyes, glowing and lighting his face when the corners of his mouth pulled into a grin. Noah felt a warmth radiating from her heart and spreading outward, touching all the places inside her that she'd kept dark.

A moment of understanding passed between them, then she realized his ring was gone. He saw her notice, glancing at his bare finger before raising beautiful green eyes to meet his.

"Yeah," he answered the question in her eyes, "I, it was this morning. I can't keep wearin' it, not anymore. After last night..."

"...are you okay?"

He smiled at her, assuring her he was okay right now before launching into the story of what happened the night before, that had spurred this spontaneous trip in the first place. Noah's pouty lips turned down into a frown as she listened to him talk about how embarrassed he was, and angry. Her brows furrowed when he mentioned the kids, and Christy's loaded threat.

"Can she do that? Can she keep them from you?" She had cut him off mid-sentence, unable to hold back the sharpness of her tongue.

"She can try," he answered, his gaze going to his hand again.

"That isn't fair! She, you," Noah huffed, unable to find the words.

"I know," he replied, understanding her anyway. "I'mma fight her, Noah. Whatever it takes."

"Good. You don't deserve to have your kids taken from you out of spite."

Link smiled, "you sound like Rhett."

"It's good to know he has your back, you know? Especially now when..."

"...I told him 'bout us." Link admitted, wanting her to know.

In a way, he felt like it could be reassurance for her and maybe for himself too. Mainly because he could be the only one to know about them for a while. It wasn't that he was opposed to the idea of people knowing about them, but letting people see them together, people who knew them especially, was a big step. He had an entire fan base to consider, too. He wasn't sure if they were quite there yet; in fact, he wasn't quite sure where they were at all in all this grey, but Rhett knew and that was huge for him.

"Did you tell him...everything?"

"Would it bother you if I did?" He asked, suddenly nervous how she might react.

"I mean, it's going to be weird knowing that Rhett knows you've seen me naked, but otherwise it doesn't bother me at all." She winked, taking her roll back and smearing more butter on it. "Besides, we haven't really talked about, about...us, you know? I guess knowing that you told Rhett, it kinda, I don't know. It makes me feel better. I just, things kinda just happened without either of us tryin'. I, I haven't really known what would happen and geeze, now I'm rambling..."

Link could see the doubt flash across her face. He remembered a conversation they had a while ago where she had revealed to him how bad she'd been hurt by lovers before and he almost saw her walls going back up. Sometimes he forgot that he wasn't the only one that was part of this; he wasn't the only one that had a heart that could be broken.

He reached for her again, taking her hand in his.

"Hey, it's okay," he assured her. "I, I wanna be honest with you okay?"

She nodded, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, as he continued, "okay, good. Now, I ain't good at this, this-this whole thing," Link gestured between the two of them with his free hand, "whatever this thing is. I don't even remember how to date...but, but I wanna try."

Noah's heart was beating so loud she was surprised he couldn't hear it. The adoration she had for him, the love she felt, it was all so much greater in this moment as he bumbled and stumbled his way through whatever thoughts he had rattling around in his brain. She hadn't felt this way, ever, and even though she'd told herself not to give her heart away, she hadn't stood a chance.

"You do?" She had to be certain.

"Course I do! I've never, I," Link swallowed before trying again. "Do you? Wanna try?"

She nodded, unable to make the words come out, scared that at any moment it could all shatter.

"Good," he continued. "Then listen, just...this, right now, this ain't a good time to be startin' somethin'. I'm gonna be fightin' Christy for God knows how long, and hey, look at me, this ain't a good time but I _want_ this Noah. I want this, with you. Wanna make it work, it's crazy. I, I've _never_ felt this way..."

"...but..."

"...but I don't want to put you in a situation that could jeopardize this whole thing. The beasts don't even know I'm gettin' divorced yet n' I don't wanna cause you any trouble. Don't need people assumin' the worst of us before we even get started. I, I wanna do this the right way because...I, well 'n then you work for me. That's somethin' else we gotta consider..."

"Link," her voice cut through his, which was starting to ramble too.

He looked at her, swallowing and staring at her as he waited for her to say what she wanted to say. He'd said too much. He'd gone off on a tangent and he'd scared her. He was sure of it.

"Come with me, okay?"

He furrowed his brow, confused but willing to do anything she asked him to do. She waited for him to follow her after he threw some bills on the table, leading him out into the now dark city without saying another word. She wove him through the city streets, Link glancing around at the lights and tall buildings until they wound a corner and it opened up into a square, dozens of Christmas trees lit up and decorated.

It was beautiful.

"My Dad used to bring me and Hailee here when we were little girls. They light these trees every year."

She began to weave her way through the beautiful lighted pines as she continued.

"He used to tell us that we could be anything we wanted. He never stopped believing in us, you know?"

He spared a glance in her direction, appreciating how she was opening up to him and wanting to hold her. He knew how painful this topic was.

"I, what I mean is my Dad loved me, and he made sure I knew it. Even when my mom and him had their issues, we always knew that he was there. He made sure he was. Link, your kids know you love them. They'll never forget it, either. You're a great dad and Christy can't take that away from you no matter how hard she tries."

He felt the sting of tears in his eyes as she reached out and laced her fingers with his, the magnitude of them holding hands out in the open not lost on him. They'd done it briefly over tables at a couple of restaurants but in the street, where anyone could see, this felt special and significant.

"I want this too, you know?" She didn't look at him, but her hand tightened around his. "I, I'm here and...and I'm not going anywhere."

He stopped her, turning her to face him and reaching to cup her cheek in his palm. The warm glow of the lights twinkled in her eyes and lit up her beautiful face. Link had never felt so sure in his life about anything. He had known love, but he had never known it like this. It hit him like a freight train and demanded he do something about it. Link wasn't known for being logical. He wasn't known for his planning things out and he often said and did things he later regretted.

This wouldn't be one of those moments. Everything clicked and whether it was the right time or not, he was going to tell her.

He opened his mouth, the words on the tip of his tongue before she cut him off, her words fast and quick like she was terrified and needed to get them out before she changed her mind...

"...I love you."


	16. Steel City: Part 3

**WARNING: ADULT CONTENT! That goes for this entire chapter! Thanks for reading. As always, leave a comment if you like :)**

Noah's back slammed off the wall and she gasped, the noise swallowed by Link's mouth as their kisses grew more eager and intense. There was _nothing_ gentle in the way they touched, both frantic in their attempt to completely consume one another. She couldn't remember ever wanting someone the way she wanted him; their first kiss in his office a couple of months ago seeming so small and innocent compared to the way he devoured her now.

There was a power shift, a change in the order of things involving the two of them. She had told him she _loved_ him, just as he was going to tell her, and both of their hearts had healed in all the places they had been shattered and cracked. Link had almost fallen to his knees when she said it, peering up at him with the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. He felt her words in his soul; a tight squeeze when he felt like he was falling apart. He had kissed her then, in the middle of the square surrounded by trees and people. He didn't care, and neither had she as they stood there embracing against the cold. He had whispered it back to her, so low he wasn't sure she had heard him at first. Then she had pulled away, a new fierceness in the way her gaze bore into his.

She had told him to take her home and he hadn't wasted a second getting her through the door, on one another as soon as the latch clicked. It was like fire burning through them, spanning the space in between and burning both of them. It felt like the first time and the last time at the same time, an urgency in the way they needed to be connected in every way.

Link wanted to inject her into his veins. He wanted to press every piece of him against every piece of her, melting into one another until they became one. He had thought he understood love before. He had thought he'd felt the peak of his affections, then she said those three words to him and it was like he could see the entire universe in her eyes and how it all worked and why they existed here together. He had held back before, he knew that now. He hadn't wanted to be so deeply invested in case she didn't feel the same, and he had needed to protect his heart and all the things he had built for himself in the years he had been married to Christy...that all changed the second she opened her mouth.

He was in. He was ALL in, and there was no going back. She was part of him, and nothing else mattered; not Christy, not his divorce or the fight he'd have to surely endure these next few months, not the backlash he might get from Stevie or the mythical beasts; nothing mattered except Noah and how she practically clawed at his back after he shrugged out of his flannel, desperate to feel his skin against hers.

Link dropped her feet back to the ground, kissing her until he reached over his head to grab the fabric of his t-shirt between his shoulder blades, tugging the cloth up and over his head in one swift motion. His glasses caught in the shirt but he didn't care, dropping both to the ground with a light clatter before reaching for the redhead just as she pulled off her sweater, tossing it somewhere to the side. He pulled her back into him, their mouths a clash of tongues and teeth as he lifted her back onto his hips, his palms flat against the backs of her thighs.

He started to lead them blindly toward the bedroom, trusting his basic knowledge of the layout of the Air BnB to get them there. Her hands ran up his biceps, eliciting a small groan of satisfaction from him, before kneading their way across his shoulders and up to his hair. She couldn't help but tug when he tripped over the rug, stumbling just a little, before gaining his footing again.

He recovered quickly, setting her on the table before his big hands rested against either side of her face, his eyes bouncing back and forth between hers, before he leaned in again. Noah felt a sudden tenderness in the way his eyes softened before his nose brushed against hers, pressing a gentle kiss against her lips, then another, and another, the pressure starting to bubble and build again.

Link felt the tickle of her touch on his sides, fingers dancing along his charged up skin and sending a shock with every light scratch of her fingernails.

"I, _mmm_ , I want you," she whispered against his mouth.

Link groaned, her words striking him like lightning and jumpstarting his heart...among other things. He was done playing nice; there would be a time for gentle kisses later, but for now, Link wanted nothing more than to bury himself deep inside of Noah and fall over the precipice of pleasure.

Noah saw it in his eyes, pupils blown out leaving nothing but a thin strip of silvery blue around the edges. It was similar to how he looked at her the night before; he the predator and she the prey, with a new layer. Like she _belonged_ to him, and she did. Her bottom lip pulled between her teeth in anticipation, remembering the night before.

" _Fuck_ ," he groaned, leaning in and capturing her mouth in a bruising kiss, pulling her bottom lip between his own teeth before soothing the bite with his tongue.

She reciprocated, her own tongue pressing back into his. Link let her go, hands traveling between them to undo the button on her pants at the same time she had reached to undo his. They were back to working in tandem, heat flaring up. Link grabbed the waistband of her jeans, yanking them down her hips, rendering a squeak from her as she slid near the edge of the table. He smirked at the look of surprise on her face, his mouth finding hers again as the denim slipped down her calves. She broke away to reach down and pull off one boot before he pulled the other one off, tangled in her pants and leaving her bottom half in nothing but the black thong she had worn that day.

The cold of the tiled table top made her gasp into his mouth, sending a shiver up her spine and making her skin goose pimples. He rubbed his hands up her bare legs, his thumbs massaging her inner thigh, coaxing them apart as he settled between them. Noah felt every nerve in her body crackle with electricity as Link started to press hot, open-mouthed kisses down her bare torso and across her stomach, his hands leaving her thighs to wrap around her legs and pull her even further toward him, balancing precariously on the edge of the table.

She leaned backward, gasping when her spine curved over the centerpiece on the table. Link grabbed her arm and sat her back up, his big hands coming to tangle in her hair, his mouth slanting over hers again and again. It was all so fast and frenzied, a tangle of limbs and clothing being ripped off of one another as they both yearned for the intimacy they had just started experiencing together. He reached behind her and popped the clasp on her bra easily, pulling the lacy fabric down and off her arms. Noah loved the attention he gave her, touching every inch of her body and fisting the little triangle of fabric right above her bum before she started to shove at his jeans.

Link knew what she wanted, letting go of her only to slip his shoes off and lower his pants and briefs to the ground. She eyed him in appreciated, his size something he'd always been proud of and not shy about. Her hands slid around his waist when he stepped back into her personal space, her mouth finding his collar bones, his chest, his neck. It felt so good, all of it. This woman loved him and for the first time in a long time, Link felt the weight of what that meant, the weight of loving someone so wholly and completely.

She was his. She loved him, and now she, _fuuuck_ , now she was palming at his erection and he was so hard it hurt. Link had never wanted someone as bad as he wanted her. She was so beautiful, her skin so soft and tight, her lips so kissable. He'd had her three times and he had a feeling he would never get tired of it. The way she looked up at him, desperate and needy, the way her body arched and shivered in response to the way he touched her, everything made him tremble with want.

 _He needed to be inside of her._

Noah's heartbeat doubled when Link tugged her the rest of the way off the table, palming her ass before whispering dark and husky in her ear, "turn around."

She did, her breath coming out harsh as his front met her back, his hands sliding down over her arms as he placed her hands on the table. She almost whined when he stepped back, the loss of him against her felt cold and she yearned to have him keep her warm. Then she felt his hands, open and wide, start to slowly run up the length of her legs and her knees grew weak. His breath hot, brushing against the bare cheeks of her bum.

Link appreciated every inch of her as he felt the soft, velvety warmth of her skin. Her back was arched, thighs parted to reveal a thin band of black lace, barely covering her gorgeous pussy. Beautiful, round ass perched on top of her toned legs. Link massaged his way to her core, fingers digging into the plump flesh and thumbs spreading her open just a little more. Her little noises and subtle motion of her hips, gently pushing back toward him made him crazy. He could smell her sweet, musky scent, and when he pulled the fabric of her panties into his mouth he could taste how wet she was underneath.

" _Ohmygod,_ " Noah gasped, head coming down to rest on the table as she felt Link's tongue run along her seam over her lacy undies. The rough fabric rubbing her with the pressure of his tongue, his hair tickling her bum and making her tremble. She felt so vulnerable; spread open for him and her most private areas on display. It was so hot, the thought of him eating her from behind, she could cum just by imagining it.

Then he was gone too soon...she felt his hand tangled up in the hair on the base of her neck, not a second after, pulling her back off the table, twisting her neck in a way that allowed him to capture her mouth in another searing make-out session. His hand skimmed down her lower tummy, dipping into her panties and sinking two fingers deep in her core without hesitation. She cried out into his mouth as he started working her, his fingers sliding in and out before pressing into the soft, sponge-like spot that sent fire and ice to every inch of her body. Her toes curled against the floor, hands gripping the table as she tasted herself on his tongue.

"Wanna cum?" He asked, capturing her mouth again.

" _Mhmm,_ " she managed to mumble.

He pulled his mouth off of her, his hand tightening in her hair causing her to feel a jolt of pain that zinged straight to her pussy.

"Tell me," he demanded, his voice as hard as his length pressed against her lower back.

Noah could see the hard line of his jaw, lips parted almost into a snarl as he pressed her further into the table, his palm pressing hard into her clit. Her eyes flew open as she inhaled sharply, her hands leaving the table to grab Link's forearm. She was hanging on for dear life, sure that if he let go she would collapse on the floor.

"I-I, _mmm,_ baby please..."

Her body was starting to break out into a sweat, but Link was relentless, twisting her neck even more to kiss her hard and fast before, "please what..."

Noah's hips pressed down into his hand, wanting more, wanting to explode.

"I w-wanna, _ah_ , wanna, _uhn_ ," she stuttered, his hand and dominance over her making it impossible to form coherent sentences.

"You wanna what?"

His hand slowed, and she almost cried. She was so close, so _so_ close. She ground her hips against his hand, needing to cum. She felt herself pulse gently against his fingers as he pulled them slowly out.

"What you want baby? Tell me..." he whispered into her hair, his country accent coming back stronger when he was turned on. She loved it. He let go of the auburn locks and slid down to grab the little triangle of fabric at the top of her ass. His wet fingers rested against the soft, trimmed hair in a neat triangle on her pubic bone.

"I wanna c-cum," she turned to look him in the eye, refusing to cower under the intensity of his stare regardless of how weak she felt. "Make me...make me cum Link."

She grunted as he pushed her against the table again, hard enough for her hip bone to knock against the edge and fast enough to thrill her. She would've cried out, but in a second his hand had slid down the string of her panties, pulling it to the side before lining himself up with her entrance and pushing inside. Her eyes fluttered shut, stretching to accommodate his size and length. His fingers found her bundle of nerves again, rolling it between two fingers as he bottomed out, deep and thick in her walls.

He made quick work of her, his hips moving with purpose and intent. Her ass bounced off his pelvis, the room filling with the sound of skin slapping and wet, lewd noises and moans. Noah felt her orgasm building back up, losing herself completely in the way it felt when Link fucked her. It was so good, the pleasure and pain a beautiful combination that had her pressing back against him searching for more.

"Harder," she ordered, voice surprisingly strong for feeling so weak and out of control.

Link heard it, her command hitting him with a groan. He pulled his hand off her, grabbing her hips hard enough to dent her skin and leave marks. Then he listened to her, driving into her tight hole hard enough that her toes lifted off the ground as she bent completely over the table, arm swiping at the centerpiece and knocking it out of the way.

Noah's skin was on fire, the contrast of the cool tiles of the table against her naked front, her breath panting hot condensation across the surface by her mouth. She had completely given over to the sensations swelling inside of her, legs beginning to tremble and shake as her moaning grew louder.

 _Almost...there...so...close...fuck..._ Link noticed, grinding into her and sliding his hands to her ass, spreading her cheeks and rolling his hips against her as he glanced down his own body to enjoy the view.

 _"Ah! Fuck! I'm, I'm, ooh!"_

Noah's eyes squeezed shut, every muscle in her body flexing as she clamped around him, light exploding throughout her entire body. Pure pleasure rippled in pulsing heat from her core to the tip of every toe. He didn't slow, grinding deeper against her as her legs shook uncontrollably and she ground her teeth against the harsh exhales of her own breathing. She felt when he slowed, but hardly registered when he pulled out completely, lost in the afterglow.

Link had to pull out or he would've cum too, and he wasn't ready for this to be over. His legs were on fire, but when hers had started trembling he had to bite down on his own tongue to keep from crying out and pull him away from the glorious explosion he felt building. He could've easily let himself push deep, releasing his seed into her wet center but no, he wanted her to cum again. He would make sure she did. He wanted to see her completely spent. Not willing to waste any more time, Link pulled her up, leaning down to slide an arm under her knees while he lifted her bridal style.

Noah hardly registered when she left the table as he carried her to the bedroom, watching this time so he wouldn't trip as she leaned forward to lazily suck on his pulse point. She tasted the salt of his sweat, sinking her teeth into his tan skin. He hissed before he all but threw her onto the bed.

Her back hit the mattress and she felt her soaking wet panties being dragged down her legs a moment later. Link was on her in second, kissing her deep and long while his hand found the apex of her thighs. She gripped his shoulders, a buzz of pleasure ripping from between her lips as he stroked her extremely sensitive nub and teased her worked hole.

"Wanna see you cum again," he murmured against her sweaty temple.

Noah was overwhelmed, her entire body alive and shivering in gratification. She didn't know if she could physically endure another orgasm, but damn did she love this man. She pulled his head down, capturing his mouth before whispering "you better fuck me again, then."

That was it. This was the end and Link decided if he died right now, he'd die the most satisfied man on earth. He almost came into thin air as her glazed expression tempted him. Sitting up on his haunches, Link watched as Noah drew her knees up toward her chest, spread wide and letting her eyes rest as he slid back inside of her; one hand fondling her own breast while the other grabbed the wrist of his hand squeezing the inside of her thigh.

Link started moving rhythmically, eyes moving between where they connected, her bouncing tits, and her face which was twisted in pleasure. She moved with him, lifting her hips in time with his thrusts. They built a steady pace, not as hard as the kitchen but just as good. Noah sat up on her elbows then, her head falling back before lifting it to look at him.

There was something different in the way he looked at her that made her spine tingle; his brows drawing down over his intense eyes and breath hot and fast as he looked down at her. He pushed forward, leaning over her and changing the angle. Noah's hand around his wrist shifted to rest against his abdomen as he placed a hand on either side of the bed next to her waist, curling into her. This new position let her clit grind against him and she was already close again.

They didn't break eye contact, Noah's legs bouncing with every thrust of Link's hips. He felt that familiar tingle and tightening in his lower back. He was close, but he needed her to come again. He wanted to come with her, together. He weighed himself on his left hand, his right one coming up to rest against the back of her head and pull her the last few inches to him, kissing her deep in an effort to convey how much he loved this, how much he loved her, and how close he was. She pushed up onto her hand, their kiss becoming more intense as she planted her feet on either side of his legs and started grinding back against him.

This was it, he couldn't stop it. He was so fucking close. He wrapped both of his arms around her waist, caging her in as she fell back into the mattress and he pressed into her. Link buried his head in the crook of her neck, his arms tightening and his hips growing erratic. She clung to him, her legs coming up to wrap around him as they started to tremble again. She was so hot, overheated as her eyes rolled back in her head. It was too much and he was heavy and her pussy quivered and he was moaning loudly by her ear and _oh fuck she was cumming again_!

He felt it, felt her stiffen in his grip and cry out loudly. He felt her slick wet juices run down his balls before three more big thrusts and he was free; his entire body seizing up as he filled her, lost in wave after wave of pleasure as he released stream after stream of hot cream.

 _So good. Never stopping. Fuck. Can't move. Love her. Love him._

It took a lot for Link to finally move when it was all over, rolling onto his back with shaky movements. His chest moved rapidly as he tried to catch his breath, the room swirling around him. That had been, without a doubt, the best sex he'd ever had in his entire life and when he was able to talk, he let her know just that.

"I, I agree," she huffed, still unmoving.

They were both spent, spending a few more minutes recovering before shifting and standing together. She almost collapsed, her legs weak and muscle memory causing them to shake under her weight. Link had caught her and they had started getting ready for bed together. After getting cleaned up they crawled under the covers, Link stripping the top cover because Noah had soaked it. She had been embarrassed at first until he had smiled at her and told her he loved it, kissing the corner of her mouth. Now they clung onto one another, cooling down and settling into a deep rest.

"What happens now?" Noah whispered, her eyes staying closed but unable to keep the thought from escaping.

"Go to sleep," he whispered back, "we'll talk in the morning."

Noah felt the bed shift before he placed a kiss on her forehead. She smiled, content with that for now and just too exhausted to press it any further. Her body hummed as she slipped off to sleep.


	17. You're Not Leaving?

p class="MsoNormal"strongThis chapter is a little shorter, but the next chapter their back in California so I didn't want to break it up! No warnings, and no worries because Link and Noah will be back together next chapter :) Thanks for reading!/strong/p  
p class="MsoNormal""10! 9! 8!..."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link stared at the timer as it ticked down the seconds, beer bottle in his hand that wasn't stroking Jade span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanwhile Louis yelled to his Mom, Sue, that it was almost time./p  
p class="MsoNormal""...7! 6!..."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lily secured a sparkly party hat to her head, a tradition every year regardless of how old she was getting, while she shouted the numbers along with everyone in time square./p  
p class="MsoNormal""...5! 4!..."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lincoln took the glass of sparkling cider his grandma offered him as she quickly made her way back into the room, stepping over Lando who had fallen asleep on the floor about an hour ago./p  
p class="MsoNormal""...3! 2!..."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link looked around at his kids, his Mom, Jade, and even Louis as the absence of the familiar blonde head of hair wasn't tucked against him like usual, waiting for a kiss at midnight./p  
p class="MsoNormal""...1!..."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link took a big breath, waiting for the anxiety./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Happy New Year!"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"It never came./p  
p class="MsoNormal"He could've cried when he realized the icy cold trickle of a panic attack never crept up his spine. He thought that the painful memory of not having Christy by his side might kill him as the clock struck midnight but it didn't, and he realized with clarity that for the first time he was totally fine. The worst year of his entire life was over and he had survived it. He knew this upcoming year would be hard too, but there was no way it could be as difficult as last year. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Last year/em./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link smiled and sipped his beer, laughing at Lincoln who said something funny before standing to hug Lily who had approached him for their annual "first hug of the New Year".span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe kissed his mom on the temple, moving to his youngest who had miraculously continued sleeping through the commotion. He scooped the boy into his arms as gently as he could, lifting the small blonde and cradling him against his chest as he moved down the hall and into the bedroom all three of his children were sharing for the night./p  
p class="MsoNormal"There hadn't been a plan to be at his Mom's on New Years, but when he had flown back from Pennsylvania he had called Sue immediately, knowing he wasn't going back to Christy's parents. Then he had called Christy and they had both agreed they needed more space, but he had wanted his kids. It had been a few days since he'd seen them and would take them for the night and pick Christy up on the second to head to the airport./p  
p class="MsoNormal"He had told his Mom everything when they had talked. Well, he had told her almost everything. He had made sure to leave out the parts where he had fallen in love with someone else. He told her that, in general, he had met someone but when she questioned him he had brushed it off as not important./p  
p class="MsoNormal"It wasn't that he was ashamed or he didn't want to scream it from the rooftops, but he and Noah both had decided that right now wasn't a great time to come out with it. He needed to battle Christy in the courts; he hoped he wouldn't need to but he had a feeling. Then there was the community he and Rhett had built. He'd taken his ring off and he knew the beasts would notice the second his naked finger flashed across the screens of their computers. He needed to address his divorce before he addressed his dating someone who worked for him, which could be an issue in and of itself. He'd need to talk to Rhett about the conflict of interest, talk to the beasts about it, and talk to Noah about what she was comfortable with./p  
p class="MsoNormal"When he'd left the day before, they had talked over breakfast and had concluded they were exclusive but not official. Link didn't feel right calling her his girlfriend, a word he didn't care for much anyway when they couldn't be open about what they were doing. He wanted to date her, wanted to be able to hold her hand and introduce her to his family. He wanted to meet her family too, and not feel like he had to hide her in the shadows./p  
p class="MsoNormal"He still thought it was crazy, his being with someone so soon after his official separation from Christy, but he couldn't deny that Noah was special. If he let this opportunity go, what if he never found it again? It was all so fragile, so new...but so beautiful it almost hurt him. He didn't want to let it go, never wanted to let em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"her /emgo. So yeah, they would keep their secret for now but he'd be damned if he lost this love he had found./p  
p class="MsoNormal"She agreed he should talk to Rhett, especially since he was her boss too and owned half of Mythical. There were potential consequences for their dating, but Link assured her he would take care of it and that Rhett had seemed supportive enough when the subject had been brought up before. Stevie might be a different story, her having a more distinct stance on interoffice relationships, but Link was confident things would work out./p  
p class="MsoNormal"They had to. Things had been so against him that he wasn't sure what he would do if things didn't./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link had just closed the door to the room his kids were sharing when his phone rang out in his pocket, signaling a text message coming through. He smiled when he saw her text, wishing him a happy new year and a couple of X's and O's. He quickly typed out his response, a similar message to her. He briefly noted that they hadn't admitted to loving one another again since saying it a couple of nights ago in the middle of the lighted square in Pittsburgh, but there was a comfort in knowing how she felt and trusting it./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Dad?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link stopped, clicking his phone off while glancing up into the blue eyes of his daughter. She was standing near the end of the hall where the living room opened up. Link could still here Lincoln and Sue chatting, but a light snore indicated Louis had likely fallen asleep in the handful of minutes it had taken for the new year to settle in./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Yeah Lils?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Can I, um, can I talk to you?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Her fingers played with the hem of her shirt, bunching and twisting the light yellow fabric nervously./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link felt his brow pull down in concern, "of course you can, what's up?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link walked toward her, hand coming out to rest against her shoulder. Lily looked up, eyes shiny with tears she was trying hard not to let fall./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Lily, baby, what's wrong?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Can we go to your room?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link didn't know what was wrong, but he wanted to know. Lily had just been smiling and laughing a few minutes ago, and now she was fighting back tears as he led her the short walk toward the room he was taking up temporary residence in until the Neal's flew back to California in a couple days. Well, the next day, he guessed, since it was officially the first of January./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Okay, now tell me what's wrong," he said after closing the door and turning to face Lily. She had gone to sit on his bed./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Don't be mad, k'?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link nodded, encouraging her to continue./p  
p class="MsoNormal""I, I heard Mom talking and, and..."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link hurried to his daughter's side as her voice broke and a stray tear made its way down her cheek./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Hey, shh, it's okay..." he started to comfort her until she challenged him, effectively cutting him off./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Is it?" Her voice was stronger but still shaky. "Is it okay?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link's eyes bounced around his daughter's face, searching it for anything that would help him understand what she knew but she didn't give him anything but sniffles and a few swipes at her face./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Lily what are you talkin' about?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Are you gonna leave?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"It was such an innocent question that packed a huge punch./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lily continued, "I heard mom tell Grandma Patty that you're leaving and that, and that you didn't care 'bout us anymore."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link felt the heat flare up his neck and wrap around his scalp, squeezing his brain and making his eyes feel like they might pop out of his head. Christy could say and think whatever she wanted, but the fact that one of his kids had heard made him livid./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link shook his head, pulling Lily to his chest. "That ain't true Lils. I, you and your brothers are the best things that ever happened to me. I love you."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""You're not leaving?" she mumbled into his chest./p  
p class="MsoNormal""I, well," Link struggled to come up with an answer./p  
p class="MsoNormal"He em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"was /emleaving, but how could he tell her that when she was crying onto his chest? He never wanted to hurt his kids, but he supposed that at almost 14, the truth would be the best approach. He took a deep breath, pulling her back and raising her chin to look her in the eye./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Just listen', okay?" She nodded so he continued. "Me n' your mom, well, we got some issues we been tryin' to work on but...but sometimes, sometimes the best thing to do is separate. Hey, look at me Lils, it's okay. At least it will be. I love you so much n' I promise that'll never change even if everything else seems to."/p  
p class="MsoNormal""I don't want you to go!"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"She was crying again and Link pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her and placing a kiss on her dark blonde head. This had been his biggest fear when all of this shit had started happening. He didn't want to lose his kids, didn't want to hurt them, and he definitely didn't want them thinking the worst of him or Christy regardless of how mad he was at her./p  
p class="MsoNormal""It's okay," he whispered, his own eyes filling too, "shh, it's okay."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"She pulled away again, "why would mom say you don't care? Why would she say that dad?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Link was going to talk to Christy when they got back to California. If he tried to talk to her right now he would yell at her. He would yell, and he would scream, and em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"god that had never worked before so what good would it do now?/em/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Your mom is angry 'bout a lot of things, Lils, but she loves you too. She might, she might say some stuff that confuses you but I want you to know that you'n always come talk to me like you did tonight. We're gonna figure this out together, okay?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lily nodded her head, using her sleeve to dry her eyes before hugging her father tightly./p  
p class="MsoNormal""I'll take care of the boys, don't worry." She said, eyes starting to dry as she sat back up./p  
p class="MsoNormal""I know you will," he smiled at her./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Lily had always looked after her younger brothers, and Rhett's at that. She was the oldest of the five collective kids, the only girl, and by far the most aware of the world around her. She looked almost identical to her mother, right down the way her nose curved up near the tip, but she was all Link when it came to the way she remained in control./p  
p class="MsoNormal""It's late," he stated the obvious, but she nodded anyway. "I'mma go tell Lincoln he needs to get to bed. Why don't you head there too n' tomorrow we'll make breakfast n' spend the whole day together."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"A small smile pulled across her face as she reached in for another hug, kissing her dad on the cheek before heading out of the room and softly closing the door behind her. Link's smile immediately fell from his face as the anger returned, quickly morphing into sadness and then back to anger. He was emotional and upset, but he felt that he handled that well enough but he hadn't been ready for it./p  
p class="MsoNormal"He would never be ready for it./p 


	18. Red-Handed

Link sat on Rhett's chair in their office, staring at his best friend and waiting on baited breath for his response. He had just told Rhett everything, _everything_ , and he was anxious to hear what he had to say.

"Dang, man..."

"I know," Link sighed, taking his glasses off to run a hand down his face before putting them back on. "I never, I mean, who would'a thunk all them years ago I'd end up here."

"I think it's about time if I'mma be honest."

Link's face twisted into one of confusion. He didn't know what he was expecting, but that wasn't it. Rhett picked up on Link's uncertainty, shrugging a shoulder he continued.

"I just mean, you been talkin'bout leavin' Chris for, what? Half a year? Maybe longer."

"That what you got outta that whole thing?" Link asked, huffing in frustration. "This is hard, man. I-I don't, things are gonna get real tricky n' I don't know how I'm s'posed to keep it all together."

"I mean, a smokin' hot girlfriend that's ten years younger'n you is probly a good start." Rhett hadn't missed a beat, his eyes glinting with that look that was equal parts mischievous and proud.

Link narrowed his eyes but couldn't keep the smirk off his face as Rhett continued. "What? You think I'mma be surprised you'n Noah are a thing now?"

"Well, I mean, we ain't a _thing_ thing but yeah. This, this is a big deal for me."

Rhett pulled a smiled, leaning back in his seat with his hands behind his head. Link was almost uncomfortable by how relaxed the big man seemed.

"Look, you're sittin'ere talkin' about how big a deal it is that you're datin'..."

"...but we're not datin'..."

"...okay, fine. What're you doin' then?"

Link didn't like the challenge in Rhett's voice, and he was especially perplexed by the way he didn't have an answer for him. What were they doing? Well, they were...hmm. They were sleeping together, obviously, and they loved one another. He couldn't even imagine himself with anyone else and he loved spending time with her. He wanted to take her out, wanted to get to know her better, build a life with her if he could and he was confident that he would. He wanted to keep her safe, shelter her from all of the shit that was sure to stir up over the next few months...he sighed, realizing that once again Rhett was more right than he was.

"I'm not gonna tell you you're right. No, nope," Link held a hand up when Rhett opened his mouth again, "just listen. We ain't _officially_ datin'. We, we're just...we're almost there, okay? I'm in love with her but I don't know how this is gonna turn out with Christy. It's not fair."

"Not fair to you or not fair to her?"

"Whadd'ya mean?"

"Who's it not fair for, huh? Cuz the only thing I'm thinkin' ain't fair is the fact y'all ain't even givin' this a decent shot..."

"We are too!" Link felt defensive. He had all but laid his entire life down in front of Rhett and he felt like he wasn't getting any positive criticism or advice.

"Oh you are not," Rhett rebutted. "Why ain't you seein' her then? N' I don't just mean seein' her naked..."

"Hey! That's my, my," Link's mind bounced around the different options for what she meant to him.

"Your what?" There it was again, that challenge in Rhett's voice.

"I don't know, Rhett," Link bit out, irritation in his voice.

"How you think that makes her feel?"

Shit, Rhett just kept hitting the nail on the head and after 30 years of friendship, Link still hated it.

Noah had told him she was okay with what they were doing. He trusted that, trusted her to be honest with him. But, what if she wasn't okay? What if she had said that because of him? Because she was selfless and wanted whatever he wanted? She always seemed to know what he needed at any given time, and he liked to think he gave her what she needed too but maybe he was selfish.

Link groaned, "we talked. I, you know I spent a couple days with her over the break. I ain't givin' you any details so don't ask," he jabbed a finger at the bearded man who only snickered and held up his hands in mock surrender. "But...I don't know, you think I'm makin' a mistake waitin'?"

Rhett shrugged, "I think you need to make sure you're doin' what you wanna do, n' not what you think you should be doin' cuz you think it's the right thing. Make sense?"

Link contemplated what he was just told, trying to make sense out of how the ambivalence about it all made him feel. What if Rhett had a point?"Just lemme do what I need to do n' quit makin' me feel like I'mma lose her. Okay?" Rhett shrugged, clearly not done persuading Link but the brunette man continued by changing the subject anyway. "I need to tell the beasts about my divorce..."

"You talk to Christy yet?"

"Not yet. I, well, we both know this is it," Link paused, waiting for that familiar creeping feeling that once again never came. He smiled, continuing, "I'm talkin' to her tonight, headin' over there after work. I figure the episode ain't gonna be comin' out for a few days but you know they're gonna see this," he held up his ringless finger," the second I come on the screen."

Rhett nodded, "they're perceptive, that's for sure..."

"Yeah, n' they care 'bout us you know? I'd thought maybe I'd just ignore it, but they won't. I'd rather'em hear it right from me instead of a bunch'a talk."

"They need to know you're okay..."

"Pretty much, and, well...I'm hopin' I can tell them 'bout Noah sometime n' I don't want any rumors bein' started or anything that might jeopardize her in any way."

"Before you tell the beasts about Noah, you gotta tell everyone else first."

Link peered up at the taller man. He had one of those looks on his face that Link had come to know that he was implying more than he was saying. "I, I know...that's the other thing I need to talk to you about..."

"...I got no problem with it, you know that," Rhett cut him off, knowing where this was headed. "just don't let it get in the way of your jobs."

"I know," Link responded, "but everyone else?"

Rhett blew out a steady breath, eyes bouncing around for a minute before landing back on his best friend. "Chase is datin' Bethany..."

"...Chase ain't Bethany's boss," Link retort.

"I mean, no, but if he was no one would be sayin' anything still."

"Stevie might..."

"...Stevie is exactly the first person you gotta talk to."

Link sighed, "I know, but I ain't ready for that yet."

"First you gotta talk to everyone about today's shoot n' tellin' the beasts about the divorce," Rhett agreed.

Link was exhausted already and the cleanup process had barely begun…

 _An hour_ later...

Link tapped his foot under the big table he, Rhett, and their employees had gathered around. It wasn't that he was feeling particularly impatient at the moment, but the redhead seated directly across from him sure was a distraction and tapping his foot was one of the only things that kept him grounded.

Luckily the meeting was almost over and Link had effectively managed to keep his cool. He had informed everyone of his divorce, talked about how he would address it on that day's More. Every time Noah laughed it shot straight through to his heart and he almost had to close his eyes against the room. He hadn't gotten the time to see her since he'd left Pittsburgh over four days ago and just seeing her now, knowing what he did but unable to do anything about it, well, it felt like a punch to the gut.

She had said "good morning" to him when he had come in the door, a cheeky little grin on her face. He had mirrored her grin, mumbling his good morning and trying hard not to admire her further in front of his other employees. Rhett was right; he couldn't let their relationship get in the way of work.

Boy was it hard when she just sat there, looking the way she did...

He saw her sitting there, in her ripped jeans and flannel over a t-shirt that was maybe a little too low cut in the front. He could almost feel her skin under his palm, so soft and warm. Her lips were soft and supple, like a peach he wanted to take a bite out of and with her hair pulled back her neck pulsed in the spot he knew was particularly sensitive when he ran his tongue over it...

With that, Link's foot jiggled so hard it caught Rhett's attention.

"You alright bo?" The taller man asked, quirking an eyebrow to emphasize his concern.

Noah looked across the table, past Rhett and at the brunette half of the duo. He didn't seem alright. If anything, he'd seemed a little tense. Her fingers instinctually curled around the hem of her shirt. She had worn it on purpose, to hopefully catch his attention. She knew she was playing with fire since they were at work, but there was something thrilling about knowing she had seen him naked.

Link's eyes flicked to hers for just a second before addressing his best friend, letting him know he was fine. He wasn't about to admit in a room full of people that all he wanted to do was reach across the table and pull Noah onto its dark surface, taking her right then and there.

The rest of the meeting went fine, but it seemed to take entirely too long before people started filtering out of the room, headed back to work on whatever it was they had going on. Noah had stood, gathering what little items she had brought with her before she started heading for the door.

"Noah," Link called, effectively bringing her to a stop, "hang around for a minute. I gotta talk to you 'bout an idea I have for an upcoming mail more."

That had caught Jen's attention too. "you need me to stay too?"

Link just shook his head, crossing to the big wooden door as the last of the crew trickled back out into the office. "Noah'n handle it, thanks."

Jen looked back and forth between the two of them before turning and walking out. Rhett was the last one, glancing back over his shoulder.

"You never told me you had a new idea."

Noah watched as Link shrugged, not even bothering to respond. She wondered if he had talked to the tall man yet, and when Rhett looked at her before back at Link, nodding his head, she realized that he had. She felt the heat creep up her cheeks at the thought of Rhett knowing the dirty things she had done with his best friend before it changed to anxiety over how the conversation went.

"You're at work," Rhett told him, "just remember that."

"It'll only be a minute," was all Link replied and Noah's teeth sunk into her lip as Rhett glanced back at her before leaving.

As soon as the door clicked shut she felt the mood shift in the room and Link was on her. His big hands came to rest on either side of her face, tipping her head back so he could see into her emerald eyes.

"You have no idea how bad it was for me knowin' you were right there n' I couldn't, mmph!"

She had pushed up onto her toes in a flash, her mouth finding his before he even completed his sentence. Her hands tangled in the short hair on the back of his head and tightened when she pressed her body against him.

"Well hello to you too," he spoke in the small space where their breath mingled.

"Hi," she breathed back, running a hand across his stubbled cheek. "Not easy for me either, you know..."

He smirked, leaning down to press a kiss against her lips again. Noah felt electric. She felt every nerve ending in her body light on fire. Someone could walk in on them any minute and see their embrace, and she was guessing that if Link wasn't back in a few minutes, it would be Rhett that broke them up.

Rhett…

"You talked to Rhett," she stated, pulling away and looking up into his face, already knowing he had.

"Observant," he replied, "I did, and I know you're gonna ask how it went…"

"...of course…"

"...don't worry, it went good."

Noah let out a breath she hadn't even known she was holding, relief washing over her.

"He's fine with it, n' is more or less just happy that I'm happy. He said we gotta tell everyone if this is gonna get serious…"

"...if this is gonna get serious," Noah mumbled, and Link noticed the way her smile didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Hey," he said, running a thumb along her bottom lip, earning him a small smile. "I wanna talk to you 'bout somethin', that okay?"

"Course it is."

"You gonna be home later? I, well, I'm talkin' to Christy after work and hey, look at me. I wanna see you tonight. Can I come over when we're done?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll just be chilling with Dorito…"

"...she get along with dogs?"

"Um, I, yeah I think so, why?" Noah's perfectly sculpted brow arched as she questioned his intent.

"I wanna bring Jade to work tomorrow," he smirked, "n' I figure I'll be stayin' pretty late…"

Noah heard the teasing lilt to his voice. "Oh, you figure?" She teased right back, shoving him lightly in the arm.

"Hey," he mocked, rubbing his arm, "am I wrong?"

She bit her lip again, thinking of all the implications of what he was suggesting, shaking her head.

"N' that," he said, eyeing her pearly teeth sunk in the soft pink skin, "is exactly why I can't resist you...so, Jade?"

"Bring her, of course."

Link smiled, leaning down to kiss her, pushing into her and devouring her for one blissful moment before the door clicked open. They jumped away from one another like they had been burning.

"Oh!" Ellie almost dropped the food she was carrying as her mouth fell open. "I, I didn't mean...I eat in here sometimes so I can call my boyfriend. I can um..."

Link didn't know what to say as Ellie bumbled on, stuttering as she looked between the two she had just caught in an embrace.

 _Couldn't anything ever go right?_


	19. I Want a Divorce

**WARNING: ADULT CONTENT!**

Link's thumb tapped anxiously on the steering wheel as he steered through the hazy L.A. streets. He was wound, pulled tight as his muscles flexed and contracted with every small movement. The last thing, the absolute last freaking thing he wanted to do was talk to Christy after the day he had. After being caught by Ellie, he hadn't thought it could get any worse...until Rhett had chewed him out.

He had been scolded like a child, or so it felt, and the worst thing was that Noah had been there when it happened. Rhett had just told him that he needed to make sure their relationship didn't interfere with work, and within an hour another employee had caught them. _Stupid._ At least Rhett hadn't jumped down Noah's throat; that's where Link would've totally drawn the line, but now he and she had to come clean to everyone a lot sooner than they had intended.

Ellie had assured him that she wouldn't say anything to anyone, something he didn't believe for a second, but he had tried to explain it to her the best he could without giving too many details about his relationship. She said she had already suspected something and Link realized that maybe he and Noah hadn't been as secretive as he had thought. Man, he felt so stressed and out of control, something Link absolutely fucking hated. Rhett scheduled a real sit down to hash things out the next day, Noah and he had to talk about what it meant as far as business went.

Then, like things couldn't get any more strained, he had to go on and shoot his More segment. It had seemed like such a good idea when he had come up with it, but sitting there, Noah chewing her lip in the back of the room and Ellie being unusually quiet and avoiding his eyes made him feel like the video had come out less genuine than he had intended. Rhett had been quiet, letting him do most of the talking, but he had made sure to be supportive when he needed to be regardless of the way his hands flexed under the desk.

Noah hadn't even glanced in his direction when she had left at the end of the day, which hadn't gone unnoticed by Ellie or Lizzie, much to his chagrin. He had texted her when he was leaving, and she had been short but had assured him she was fine so he let her be after that. He knew she must be feeling confused about them being caught today, he just hoped her feelings hadn't changed or that she'd changed her mind about them in any way. That, the thought of Noah changing her mind about him, made him feel the anxiety more than pulling his car into the driveway of his home.

Link took a second to shake his head clear of the negative thoughts trying to intrude, taking a deep breath and preparing himself for what was to come. He had to do this, had planned to do this, and had talked himself through this very moment numerous times by now. He was ready.

Jade bound up to him the second the door opened, her familiar little bark a bloom of warmth in his chest as he scooped her up and gave her kisses. He was knocked off step by little arms wrapping around his waist, Lando shooting off questions a mile a minute and not waiting for an answer. Link had to laugh a little when he saw that the young blonde's hands were stained blue, indicating he had been experimenting with slime again. Christy probably wasn't too happy with the small boy staining one of her dishes the same dark hue, and Link smirked to himself at the familiar feeling of this moment.

"Lando…" Link looked up to see Lily near the stairs, her hand, also a blue tint, reaching for her younger brother "...come help me put the rest of the slime away."

Lando peered up at his father with big blue eyes, unlatching and running toward his sister when his dad had told him to listen to her. Link watched as Lily lingered in the hall for a minute, sharing a look with him that conveyed she knew exactly why he was here, before smiling sadly and turning away to follow her brother. She was so smart and so strong. Link knew that she had already started fulfilling her promise to look after her brothers. With that, he glanced up the stairs wondering if Lincoln was in his room…

"He's at basketball practice," Christy said, startling him. She smiled warmly, moving toward him and taking Jade, "sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

She kissed the little brown dog before setting her gently on the carpet below her feet. He mumbled it was fine as she motioned for him to follow her toward the backdoor, veering off to grab him a beer before she disappeared outside. It was a warm day in January, the sun still providing ample warmth even though it was going to start setting soon, but Link was grateful for the thick knit of his sweater regardless.

Christy perched in a chair farthest from the door and Link almost had a heart attack when he saw her pull out a pack of cigarettes, lighting a thin white stick and inhaling with expertise he didn't know she possessed. He remembered when he had tried smoking last year, using it to cope for a couple of months after he had caught her with David.

She noticed him watching her. She smiled, "I've been smoking since Lando was a baby," she told him, a glint in her eye when his brow pulled down in confusion. "I just don't care if you know anymore."

"Chris…"

"I know why you're here, Link," she took another drag, "so let's not waste a lot of time. Lincoln'll be home in about an hour n' I still need to cook supper."

Link thought he would be uncomfortable, maybe angry or sad, but he felt relief instead. He exhaled, leaning back before taking a pull from his beer.

"So who's gonna go first then?" He asked, studying the way a loose palm leaf floated across the surface of the chlorinated water a few feet in front of him.

She scoffed, "you always go first, why should this be any different?"

"What's that s'pose to mean?" He hoped that her lilting attitude would fade quickly so they could do this without arguing.

She pursed her lips, eyes hardening before she threw her cigarette to the ground and stomped it out with a little too much force. "It's always been about you, Link. This whole marriage has been centered around what you wanted, what you needed, where you had to go, what you had to do...what about me? You ever think about that?"

Link's eyes bounced back and forth between hers, wondering what she was going on and on about. Everything he did, it was all for her and the kids. He voiced that to her, emphasizing his point by adding that he worked so she could even stay home…

"...n' who made that decision!?" Her voice raised, but she still controlled it enough to not alarm their children. "I left my job to homeschool our kids because we had to come here, to California, for what? For you to chase your dream. I left everything for you; my family, my friends...I never wanted to leave North Carolina, n' you know that."

"We talked about comin' here for a year before we did, you agreed to it," he tried.

"Because you're my husband, Link! Because I loved you, and I would've done anything for you to be able to do this, to do what you love n' be happy." Her eyes became glossy but she held fast, "that's what marriage s'posed to be about."

"I'm sorry," his voice was thick and he realized that he was choked up. He coughed before he continued, "I, I never meant for this, any of this to happen...all them years ago, Christy," he shook his head, "we made a mess of things."

He understood for the first time why Christy had done what she had done. He had never stopped to consider everything she had done for him, the sacrifices she had made without complaint. He had always considered everything in their marriage to have been of equal parts but maybe it hadn't been. It really was a startling revelation for him to try and grasp. He couldn't go back and fix the past; he couldn't rewind time, save whatever it was he was losing, and frankly he didn't think he would if he could. All he could do, all _they_ could do was move forward and learn from the mistakes they had made and all he could offer Christy was a clean break.

Link thought about Noah, about her agreeing they should wait and how she had been his rock since the day she had found him out in the parking lot. She hadn't asked him for anything, hadn't pressured him or made him feel like he needed to prove anything or be anyone he wasn't. She had simply let him be who he needed to be and encouraged him, held him when he needed, listened to him vent. He wouldn't make these same mistakes with her.

Christy nodded, swiping at an eye before continuing. "Things been a mess for a long time, Link, we just been too stubborn to see it."

He agreed, nodding along in silence. They'd been unhappy for a while, he knew that, thinking of Lando and how they had planned him to try and save things.

"The kids, Lily knows…" he started.

"...you told Lily?" Her head snapped to him, eyes narrowed and a crease forming between her brows.

"No," he defended, squaring up, "she heard you talkin' to your mom 'bout how I was leavin'," Christy's brow smoothed and her head fell a fraction as he continued. "She came to me, n' I had to talk to her 'bout how I would never stop lovin' her, somethin' I never should've had to do."

"I know," she told him, a small shake of her head. "I was out of line that night, the wine is no excuse."

"Why'd you do that, Chris? I can't face 'em ever again," he referred to her family.

"You won't have to after this, huh?" She said, taking a breath and sitting back in her chair. "And you know why I did it. She, she's so young and vibrant, with her whole life in front of her. I used to be like her n' that's why you fell in love with me too…"

"...Chris," he cut her off, "whatever is goin' on with Noah n' I…"

"...you admit there's somethin' goin' on then?"

"You already know there is, Christy," he answered, feeling like they were going in circles.

"I know you had sex with her," she retorts, feathers ruffling as she said the fact. "Didn't know it was much more serious than that."

"Well," he steadied himself for his confession, "now you know."

"I hate her."

"You don't even know her, Chris…"

"...I know she gets the better part of you I never got," Christy's tone was sharp.

"Stop," he demanded, not willing to let her tarnish what he had grown with Noah. To his surprise, Christy swallowed and kept quiet. "This ain't about Noah n' me, this is about us and what we do goin' forward. We got a lotta shit to sort out n' we gotta be adults about it all."

"Mm, we do," she agreed, her stoney glare staring into the distance, "but I wanna hear you say it."

He looked at her then, really looked at her, a picture forming in his brain as he took a mental photograph of the woman in front of him. The woman he had been married to almost 15 years. He could see through her, through every piece of her, and he could tell that she was genuine, regardless of everything they had endured. It hurt, being here with her, but he had a moment of clarity and peace as he took a big breath.

"I want a divorce, Christy."

* * *

Noah found herself laying on her couch, the tv was on but she couldn't even tell what was on. Her mind was all over the place, and she couldn't focus. Ellie catching her with Link had really thrown her off. She always had it together, and kept her cool, liking to stay private and feeling anxious for the first time. She needed to deal with the aftermath at their meeting with Rhett the next day. For now, though, she had a few hours to herself to unwind and process everything that had happened this past week.

She had gone from flirting with her boss to sleeping with him, to the realization and admittance that she loved him and now, now she was back in her little apartment and trying to figure out where this new year would take them. She had never felt this way about anyone before and that was scary enough, but now her career was potentially on the line too. She was also a personality on GMM so there could be more potential backlash from the Mythical community on top of what the crew might think and what this meant for her job.

 _Sigh, it would all be worth it. He was worth it._

Noah pushed up from her couch and started through her home, watering the plants that needed a little TLC from her recent absence before gathering her dirty laundry and popping down to the basement in her building to start the washer. She always hated coming home after traveling. All she wanted to do was lay on her couch more, curled up with Dorito, and take a nap but she had to catch up on the week of dusting she had missed and unpack everything she hadn't yet.

Glancing around at the open suitcase on the ground, the few mugs still sitting in the sink, and then to her couch where Dorito was still waiting. Noah thought _screw it_ before she plopped back down on the overstuffed cushion of her chaise. Her mind wandered back to Link and how he was holding up. She knew what had happened with Christy at her parents' house at this point, knew he was mad as Hell, knew he was currently sitting next to her at their home talking about their divorce and that he was supposed to come here afterward. She hoped he was okay.

It wasn't long before Noah's eyes drifted shut and she found herself off in dreamland. She hadn't meant to fall asleep, but when her phone chirped from her kitchen island she sat up with a start. The colors of the rays floating through her windows a deep orange indicated it was much later in the day. She jumped up, kicking the blanket off from her legs as she stumbled her way across the room.

She had a missed call from her Mom, probably to check up and make sure she made it home okay, and two texts from Link; one letting her know he was still bringing Jade and the newest to let her know he was on his way over. _Shit._

Noah quickly rubbed her eyes, still heavy with sleep, and freshened up in her room. Her hair was a mess so she opted to just pull it up into an even messier little bun on top of her head. She pulled on a pair of ripped leggings, changing into an oversized navy striped shirt, and washed her face before moisturizing. Link's text had been sent a few minutes before she had startled awake which meant it would be no time before he got here. She moved through her apartment, picking up her blanket and throwing it on the couch, kicking her suitcase into her bedroom before feeding Dorito.

It took another couple minutes for her to remember her laundry in the basement, and even longer to switch the wet clothes over to the dryer. By the time she got back upstairs, Link was standing outside her door. She saw him knock, waiting in his denim jacket and dark sweatpants. He was wearing a hat, something he didn't do a lot of and Noah thought he looked handsome dressed down even if she couldn't remember him wearing one earlier at work. He had a 5 o'clock shadow, something else she was particularly fond of. He had a duffle bag slung over his shoulder, a furry Weiner dog tucked under his arm, and when he pulled his phone out and brought it up to his ear hers started to sound off tucked in the waistband of her leggings.

He looked up, mouth slightly open before breaking out into a grin that didn't quite meet his eyes. He didn't say a word, hanging up his phone as he leaned down to place Jade on the floor as she crossed to him.

"Hey," she said softly when he straightened up, using caution as she moved closer. His eyes were pink and watery, but his hand was soft as it found her cheek. "Are you okay?"

"I," he started, voice cracking, trying again, "are you okay?"

She smiled a small, crooked smile at him and assured him that she would be fine. He nodded, accepting her answer before tilting forward to press a gentle kiss against her forehead. Noah glanced up at him, craning her neck to meet his eyes. The light was missing from the ocean blue depths, and for the first time, she saw the dark smudges underneath indicating how worn out he was.

"Come on," she whispered, grabbing his hand from her face and turning to unlock her apartment, leading him inside while Jade followed timidly behind them. Dorito twitched her tail but seemed uninterested overall.

"Excuse the mess," she motioned around them, "I haven't had time to really do much."

"It ain't even a mess," he mumbled, dropping his bag before shrugging out of his jacket and taking his hat off.

"Have you eaten?" She asked, noting it was later in the evening but she was hungry anyway. "I was thinking of...ordering…" she drifted off as he crossed over to her, eyes intense. She refused to break contact first.

His arms found her waist, wrapping around them as hers found their way up and around his neck as he folded in on her, his head finding her shoulder when she pushed up onto her toes. The embrace was tight and steady, their bodies fitting together and molding perfectly.

"I'm sorry," he murmured into the space between her shoulder and neck.

Noah knew something wasn't right when he squeezed her tighter like she might disappear if he let go.

"For what?" she whispered into his hair, his grip on her tightening to an almost painful vice.

"Hey," she continued softly, pulling slightly away and guiding him so she could see his face. "What's wrong?"

His eyes immediately misted as they danced around her face. "I'm such a mess, babe."

Noah's insides did a little flip at his endearing term for her, something he had only whispered to her in times of passion before. "You are not a mess…"

"...I am," he interrupted, "But you ain't."

His hand found her cheek again, his thumb rubbing the apple of her cheek before he slid his fingers down around the back of her neck. "You'd tell me if you weren't happy, right?"

That's what was bothering him? Her happiness? She had assumed he was upset since he had just come from talking with Christy, and she assumed that did have something to do with it, but she wouldn't have guessed that she was the cause of his ambivalence.

"Where is this coming from Link?"

"Just answer me, Noah," he begged her. "If you ain't happy, you'll tell me? Not wait a decade…"

She searched his face, her heart breaking for him. She had no idea what to do, but she did know that he needed her to do this for him. "Yeah, okay," she promised, "I'll tell you, but...I'm happy. Right now, here with you, I'm happy."

He nodded his head, pulling her forward and capturing her lips in a bruising kiss. His arms slid down her sides, over her soft curves before hoisting her up his body all of a sudden. Noah let out a squeak as her knees came to rest on either side of his hips and his grip shifted to keep her perched above him. She carded her fingers through his hair as he carried them both over to her couch, sitting with her on his lap.

"I'm sorry," he repeated his earlier sentiment.

"You said that already," she told him, continuing her ministrations through his hair.

He ran his hand up her spine, "I am."

"You have nothing to be sorry for," she reiterated, leaning forward to kiss him softly.

"I just, this whole thing," he told her when she sat back up, "it's startin' right at the end of somethin' else and it's messy, and I ain't all here because I gotta be there n' you been amazing through everything." Noah's teeth sunk into her lip and she watched his eyes flit down to the supple flesh before back up to look her in the eye as he continued, "I'mma take care of you."

"Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?" She smiled, her lip popping out from between her pearly whites.

LInk shook his head, a smirk forming. "Kinda, but this...I just needed you to hear that because I mean it. I ain't losin' you."

"No," she agreed, her head tilting to the side like she was thinking of something. "You're not losing me."

Link had so much more he wanted to talk about, ask her about, and tell her. He'd been thinking a lot about them, and if they were talking to Rhett tomorrow and ultimately telling the crew they were together then what was the point of waiting? He was at her house, completely in love with her, and by the way he was feeling he knew he wasn't going to be letting her go anytime soon. As much as he hated labeling things, this needed to be more than a casual 'we'll take it slow' sort of thing.

He opened his mouth to say just that when she leaned forward again, swallowing the words he had on the tip of his tongue. She kissed him hard, rolling her hips against him and making him gasp, his hands tangling in the fabric of her shirt. She sat back and pulled the fabric over her head, then she was on him again.

She tasted like mint and something that was distinctly her, and Link was lost in everything she was doing to him. She rubbed his shoulders as she sucked his tongue into her mouth, easing the tension in his stiff muscles before kissing her way up his jawline.

"You can take care of me," she whispered, her warm breath sending a shiver straight through his body. "But first, let me take care of you."

Noah pushed her way down his body, stopping to kiss him again briefly before sinking to her knees in front of him. He watched her with heavy lids, mouth slightly open and breath shallow as she slid her fingers into the top of his waistband, pulling them down and looking up at him to urge him to lift his hips.

He followed, and she swiftly pulled the pants down and off after removing his shoes and throwing them somewhere behind her. Link leaned forward, his big hands cupping her face and kissing her hungrily while her fingers danced up his thighs to palm at his hard length tenting his boxer briefs. His mouth immediately went still and a soft groan escaped from between his teeth.

"Relax," Noah whispered, pushing him back against the cushion as she pulled the briefs down next, freeing his erection.

She'd felt him inside of her, saw him naked a handful of times, but something about seeing him now, right in front of her face, it made her mouth water. He looked bigger when she was up close, thicker and rock hard as she gripped him in her hand.

Link watched her appreciating him and couldn't help but smirk, the smile falling as soon as she wrapped her hand around his bare skin and pressed her tongue against the base of his head. It was like electricity shooting through his body as she slid her wet mouth against him, sucking him into her mouth before letting him spring back out before using the moisture to help her hands stroke him.

He was groaning freely now, letting out a strangled moan that made Noah feel hot between her legs as she sucked him back into her mouth and started bobbing up and down on his length. She sucked him slow, building up to a pace that had his toes curling against her carpet as his hands came up to grab at her hair. With a curt tug, he freed the auburn locks she had tied to the top of her head, burying his fingers deep into the wavy mess.

Link's breath was heavy, his lungs expanding and contracting harshly inside his rib cage as he grew hot all over. Noah was persistent, her mouth so warm and wet, her hands rubbing all the places her mouth couldn't reach and her spit coated him completely. _Fuck did it feel so good._ His head fell back on the couch and she felt his fingers tighten at the base of her skull, his hips starting to thrust into her mouth as his hands held her head in place.

The quiet apartment was filled with the wet sound Noah's mouth made as she sucked him harder. She pulled him in as far as he could go, fighting against his hold and opening her throat to allow for him to fit snugly down it as she hollowed her cheeks out. She had to battle her gag reflex, but Link's response to the move was enough to keep her going.

"Fuck, baby!" Link grit out, his head coming off the back of the couch to watch her pull back up only to do it again and again, deepthroating him and watching him with glossy emerald eyes to see his response.

Noah moaned against his shaft, the vibration making his balls tighten and a tingle start at the base of his spine. He was getting closer with every lick of her tongue and stroke of her hand. He didn't know if he should tell her or let it go, but Christy had never been one to let him cum in her mouth on the rare occasion she did this sort of thing for him. Whatever he was going to do, he had to decide quickly because watching her beautiful mouth stretched around him, moving up and down his slick cock in nothing but a bra and some tight ripped up leggings made him need to explode.

"I'm, I'm gonna cum," he forced out, a long groan falling from his lips as she watched him through thick lashes. She didn't stop, and instead pushed herself up further, bracing herself on his thighs and freely bobbing up and down. The angle change was all he needed.

Noah felt the vein running under his cock start to pulse, Link's hips jerking without reason before she tasted his salty release start to coat her tongue. She sucked him to the back of her throat again, letting him pump as she swallowed his hot seed. His choked groans harsh and his body tense as spurt after spurt made its way into her stomach.

Link saw stars dot his vision when she started cleaning the mess she'd left behind with her tongue. He almost twitched with how sensitive he was, coming down as his heartbeat did its best to regulate again. Finally, when his vision cleared enough to see straight, he glanced down to watch her peering up at him as she wiped the corner of her mouth.

He thought she might not have ever looked more beautiful with her hair wild around her face, the freckles that danced lightly across the bridge of her nose almost lost in the peachy pink flush of her cheeks. Her green eyes were shiny, dark lashes long and perfectly framing the emerald orbs.

God, he loved her. Everything would be fine, he was sure of it.

 **Let me know if you like! Sorry for the longer hiatus, life has been nuts!**


	20. Together

**No adult warnings for this chapter, but I love it just the same! Thanks for reading! As always, let me know if you like it or not! -Hex**

"...n' then I left. Came here to see you," Link told Noah, finished telling her about his conversation with Christy. He looked down at her as he lounged against her headboard, pillows tucked behind his bareback for comfort and to keep his skin from hitting the bare steel.

She laid on her left side, head propped up in her hand and sheet pulled loosely over her naked skin as she peered up at him from her horizontal position. The only light, a small lamp on her bedside table, cast shadows across his face and dipped between the muscles of his chest. She thought he looked handsome with his hair a mess, bite marks nibbled onto the skin of his shoulder and collarbone from their recent romp.

"I'm sorry you had to do that," she told him, fingers of her right hand dancing up his leg to rest on his thigh. His much larger hand immediately covered her smaller one, squeezing her fingers in his.

"Don't be," he reassured her, "it had to happen. I been needin' to do it for a lot longer than tonight."

"Mm," she hummed, "still couldn't have been easy."

Link's brow furrowed in thought, Noah watching his eyes bounce back in forth, unobstructed by the glasses that he'd tossed onto her dresser when they'd tangled in his shirt earlier.

"No," he confirmed, "but thinkin' of you made it better."

When he looked back at her, he had a small smile on his face and Noah was glad that it reached his eyes this time. Her cheeks heated from the blush that spread up her neck and dusted her face. The way he looked at her made it seem like she was the only girl in the world. She reached up to pull him in to kiss her, soft and sweet, until a soft weight on the bed distracted them both. Dorito had jumped up, looking for a place to sleep since the hour was growing later and later.

"Hi princess," Noah sat up to rub the orange fuzzball on her head, eliciting a rumbling purr.

A small whimper had Link leaning over the side of the bed, scooping Jade onto the mattress as she kissed her dad and bound happily over to her new kitty friend, curling in a small brown ball near where Dorito had settled down.

"Looks like they're gettin' on fine enough," he smiled, watching his little dog sigh happily and close her eyes. "Jade's never really had a friend before."

"Neither has Dorito," Noah smiled as well.

"The kids wanted to get another dog, but...but I guess we hadn't found one before everything happened."

"That's because you're too picky," Noah teased, standing to stretch her lithe frame.

Link let his eyes wander over her creamy smooth skin, finding a bruise that looked a lot like his teeth near her right buttock. He smiled, remembering when he had spontaneously bit into her flesh during a particularly rough moment. "I ain't picky," he mumbled, half distracted by Noah sliding his shirt over her head and tossing him his glasses.

"Okay, Mr. _I want another dog exactly like the dog I already have_ …"

"...I just know what I like," he countered, swinging his legs over the side of the bed.

He couldn't help but find her endearing when she rolled her eyes at him, even if he had the sudden urge to spank her for the act. Shaking his head, Link remembered what he wanted to talk to her about before he got distracted with blow jobs, Thai food, a movie, and sex. Not a bad night, one of the best he'd had in a while, but he needed to do this before their meeting with Rhett tomorrow.

He watched her leave the room, finding his briefs and visiting the en suite bathroom before climbing back into her bed and thinking about what he was about to do. The commitment didn't scare Link. He'd been married since he was 21, always finding solace in having a partner. He wasn't afraid to commit himself to Noah, even if he hadn't had much time to process his separation from Christy. He didn't care. He loved Noah, and even though his initial thought had been to wait, he didn't think he could.

"I brought you some water," she told him, smiling when she sat it on his side and climbed into bed after him, still wearing nothing but his shirt.

He thanked her, adjusting so that they were facing one another, his right hand resting on her left hip.

"Wait," he told her as she shifted to turn off the little lamp, "leave that on a sec."

She paused, pulling her hand back. "It's pretty late…"

"I know," he told her, really looking at her, "but I need to talk to you. It'll be quick."

Noah felt her stomach flip. She knew he had wanted to talk to her, but she'd had no idea what about. After not breaching a conversation all night, she thought he might've forgotten and she hadn't wanted to push him. Now he was looking at her with those eyes and she felt like she might melt away into the mattress. She snuggled down against her pillow, urging him to continue.

"I'm sorry" he started, holding a finger to her lips when she opened them to protest. "Just listen, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," she relented, wondering where this was going.

"Okay," he continued. "We been spending a lot of time together, and...well, it's all been about me, what I need. You been amazing Noah, you been the light in my life these past few months and I'm sorry that we've had to focus so much on the shit I got goin' on…"

"...Link, I don't mind…"

"...I know!" He assured her, his hand finding her face, "n' I love you for that, I swear it." He'd said it again, that he loved her, and it made every piece of her body break out in goosebumps as he continued. "I just, I need you to know how important you are to me."

"I do know," she told him, her hand coming up to grab his.

Link leaned forward to catch her mouth in a quick kiss before he kept going, "I wanna be better at it. I-I want to be there for you too, be who you need me to be. I've never asked you what you want," he told her. "I've always told you what I need, so now I'm asking…"

Noah sat up just a little, pushing herself up onto her elbow. "What is this? What are you doing?"

"I'm asking you what you want, silly girl," Link laughed, his hand finding hers and bringing it to his mouth.

"I want whatever you want," she tried, but he shook his head.

"Tell me," he told her, watching as her face shifted and her eyes searched his face.

Noah wasn't sure what he wanted to hear, but maybe that was his point. She had always been a helper, a healer as she had been told years ago by a therapist. She'd always wanted to make sure those she loved were happy and that she made their lives a little better, and Link was no different. Whatever he needed, she was more than willing to give him, and she had always considered that what she wanted too. She had a real problem letting others take care of her; to be the one who appeared vulnerable. Ever since her dad had gotten sick, Noah had put others first.

"I'm not good at this, Link…" she offered, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth and willing him to just tell her what this conversation was.

"...you don't have to be good at this," he smiled, "I ain't very good at it either. I'm tryin' though." He reached up to pull her lip gently from her bite, smoothing his thumb over the plump skin. "Just tell me, Noah. I been doin' a lot of thinkin' about, about us and I need to know where you're at."

"What have you been thinking?" She tried to divert the conversation back to him, but her mind was already thinking about how she wanted to take this thing a step further but fear held her back.

"I been thinkin' that, that we got no point in waitin'," he said, his voice strong even if he felt his heart beating inside his chest. "I been selfish tellin' you we couldn't be together when that's all I really want, so...so if that's what you want too…"

"I do want that," Noah breathed, her voice catching on the back of her tongue as she interrupted him. Her mind was dancing all around, this fragile moment balancing on a tightrope. It was all happening so fast, but the transition from friends to lovers had been so organic that anything other than what he was proposing was unfair to both of them.

Link blinked, "than be with me," he pushed himself up, watching as Noah followed suit. "Let's do this…"

"Like for real?"

"Yes!" He laughed again, the beating in his chest so loud he thought she might hear it. "Be with me, Noah. Let's give this thing the chance it deserves."

She had never felt this way about anyone or anything; the weight of this moment heavy and swinging between them. If she thought things had changed the moment he kissed her in his office a few months back, she'd had another thing coming. She nodded her head but she didn't think she could find her voice if she tried to open her mouth.

"Yeah?" He took her hand again, "we-we're doin' this? We're together?"

She nodded her head again, a thousand things running through her mind at once but the loudest one being that she loved this man in front of her under any and all circumstances. She knew this was risky, they both did, but they couldn't deny what was staring them in the face. They belonged together.

"Well okay," he started before she finally found her voice. It wasn't what he expected when she finally talked.

"Holy shit, this is crazy," Noah smiled, "you're you…"

"N' you're you," he fired back, a chuckle on his lips.

"I know but, but you're...you're Link. You've got fans, you're...I don't know."

"Are you just now figurin' out what I do?" He laughed, "cuz you been workin' for me over a year now."

Her cheeks went pink, "I'm sorry, I know. I just, I want to make sure this is okay. I'm not, people love you."

"N' I love you," he told her, reaching out to grab her and guide her onto his lap.

She ran a finger down the line of his nose, smiling as he kissed the pad of her finger when she reached his mouth. "I love you too."

"Good, cuz I ain't doin' this life without you darlin'," he used an endearing term for her again and she smiled as his hand found her cheek.

"This is crazy," she repeated softer.

"You said that already," he teased, leaning forward to kiss her short and sweet.

"I know," she said once he pulled back, "but it is. You're so special to me, and I didn't know how this would end…"

"It ain't gonna end," he retort, kissing her again. "There's a lot of shit we gotta figure out, but bein' together ain't one of those things."

"I trust you," she told him as she rested her forehead against his, a shiver running up her spine to follow his finger running up and down. Noah's heart was full and she could hardly believe that this beautiful person was hers.

"Good. Now, as much as I'd love to consummate this relationship again," he winked, eyes flitting to her mouth as she smiled, "we both gotta be at work in the morning n' it's gonna be a big day."

She agreed, kissing him again long and slow before sliding off his lap and back down under the covers. He followed suit, allowing her to reach over and turn the light off, the room being washed out in darkness but both of them reaching for one another. They lay facing each other, hands intertwined and breath mingling between them.

Link saw her shape against the black of the room, his eyes adjusting. He could feel her shift closer to him, his girlfriend. He hated that word, feeling juvenile when he thought about it, but the meaning behind it was enough to smile. She was his, really his, and he was hers. It wasn't just physical anymore. He had been with Christy for so long he had forgotten how exciting a new relationship could be.

Link was scared but he had never adored Noah more than he did right now. He'd thought that before, that he couldn't care about her more if he tried, but every day he did. She had become one of the most important people in the world to him and he wanted to protect her, care for her in the upcoming months that were certainly going to be trying to both of them.

He anticipated the separation and in turn, the time it would take to settle down after. He and Christy had talked tonight and she was mad, she told him she was mad, and when they had talked about the kids she had told him she didn't know what would happen but they would figure it out. He made sure she understood that he would fight for his kids, and she assured him that she would too; it didn't help that she had thrown Noah in the mix by stating she didn't want them around her. He had chosen not to argue with her decision, but he wouldn't let it slide forever. At the very least Christy had agreed to sign papers once they were drawn up…

She shifted closer, her cheek finding his hair and her arm snaking around his neck to hold him against her. He could smell her skin, sweet and a little salty from sweat and his saliva that had coated it just a little while ago. It was enticing him, and he tilted his head just enough to plant a soft kiss under her jaw.

"I love you," he told her one more time for safe measure.

"I love you too," she whispered back, sighing contentedly into the night.

Link closed his eyes and relaxed, Noah at his side and Jade by his feet, relishing in the calm before the storm.

She sat lotus style next to him on the couch in his office, fingers laced while she waited for both of her other bosses to reply to their coming totally clean. Rhett had already known, mostly, he hadn't been made aware that they had officialized their relationship but he didn't seem phased by it at all. Noah was grateful. Stevie, however, seemed more concerned.

"This can't get in the way of the work you do," she said, her face a blank canvas but her jaw tighter than usual. Noah felt Link squeeze her hand tighter.

"It already did," Rhett told her, much more relaxed in his seat. "Ellie caught 'em yesterday."

"You guys!" Stevie scolded, "what am supposed to do if this gets out?"

"Well, what's so bad about it gettin' out?" Link challenged, a twitch under his left eye.

"Everything Link!" Stevie shot right back while Rhett just watched the exchange. "You're her boss!"

Neither of them had known that Stevie would be sitting in on their meeting, but when they had walked in the office and seen her in Link's chair by the door he had immediately reached for her hand. He hadn't let it go since. It wasn't that they were scared of Stevie, the exact opposite was true, but she had leverage at Mythical Entertainment and her opinion held as much value as either his or Rhett's.

"So what," Link started, but one look from Rhett told him that he needed to keep quiet.

"So what?" Stevie's brows pulled down over her eyes, "so what? There are other people that work here too and this could jeopardize the monopoly…"

"Stevie," the bearded man cut in, "let me take this a minute." The blonde only pursed her lips and sat back in her chair when Rhett leaned forward. "Noah," her eyes shot to Rhett, not expecting him to address her. "You make him happy," he gestured toward Link, "n' in turn that makes me happy cuz he been brooding for so long…"

"...I ain't been brooding…" Link mumbled, but Rhett only spared him another glance before his gaze found Noah's again.

"...this has nothin' to do with you datin' Link, I just want you to know that."

"This does have something to do with her dating him," Stevie argued, but once again Rhett was quick to defend them.

"It has to do with her workin' for him, the datin' thing is more than okay." Rhett looked back at the duo on the couch, finding his best friend. "We worry cuz it ain't only you guys this could affect. If Ellie'd been pissed she could've left. We'd have been out a good writer. If anyone thinks Noah's gonna get special treatment now it could make this positive environment a real shitty place."

Link swallowed, glancing at Noah before he responded. "I've thought of that, n' I think the only thing that'll help is people seein' I ain't treatin' her any different…"

"We'll have to pull everyone together for a meeting," Stevie started.

"Why's everything gotta be a meeting!?" Link's voice rose an octave and Noah couldn't help but stare at him. His neck was flushed and his face was pulled tight. She instinctively shifted closer to him as he continued. "Why can't we just, just be together and answer questions as they come?"

"That would be great," it was Stevie who answered, "but this isn't just a casual thing. This isn't just two people dating. You have a fanbase, you're in the public eye. There are people that work for you, Noah being one of them. You have to think about your image."

Link scoffed, "my image? I gag on the internet for a living…"

"Hey," Noah's voice was soft but it reached him, Link looking at her immediately, his face softening. "It's okay," she assured him, "Stevie's right. People don't even know about your divorce yet, they haven't had a chance to process that let alone you dating someone else."

"Well you too," he countered. "When people find out it's, it's you…"

He drifted off, but Noah knew what he was saying without him having to finish his sentence. People could be cruel, and although the Mythical Beasts weren't usually part of that category, there were bound to be some people that disagreed with their relationship. She wasn't one that sought out the spotlight, but dating Link would make her more of a target.

"I know," the corner of her mouth quirked up into a small smile. "That's why we gotta be smart about this."

"That's, yeah," Stevie finally sat forward again, pulling Link's gaze away from Noah. "And the first step is telling the crew. They all deserve to know."

"I get that," Link responded, letting go of Noah's hand to raise his glasses and run a hand down his face. "I just hate that it's gotta be that way, you know? It ain't a production, it's just two people that...that love each other."

Noah took a deep breath, her mind swirling around the fact that Link had just said he loved her in front of Rhett and Stevie. She wanted to kiss him; she wanted to grab his face and press her lips against his, tasting him. Her heart swelled, but she stayed rooted in her spot.

"I'm happy for y'all, really," Rhett smiled warmly at the pair. "We gotta get to know one another better Noah," he laughed.

She hadn't thought of that! Well, she'd thought of it in the way that Rhett was Link's best friend, but not beyond that. Rhett was such a huge part of Link's life, and in turn, that would mean he'd become a big part of hers too. Plus there was Rhett's wife, who was friends with Christy, and both men's children. Noah felt overwhelmed, the weight of how much her entire life was going to change, but then she felt Link's hand come to rest on her knee and everything felt right again.

She was cool and relaxed, traits that had earned her this job in the first place.

She smiled at Link before turning to look at the taller man, "yeah, I guess we do. I like Chinese food if you ever wanted to get lunch or something."

"Sure, we'll figure out when later…"

"I don't mean to interrupt this bonding moment," Stevie chimed in, "but we haven't come up with a single plan since we've been here. I, as much as it goes against everything I've always said, can see how happy you two are. Link, I love you, you're such an important part of my life and seeing you happy again is something I can't come in between."

"Thank you," he told her, "I was nervous 'bout you finding out if I'm honest."

"Am I scary?" Stevie joked.

"Terrifying," he told her and everyone got a chuckle.

"Well, it's gonna take me time to get used to it," Stevie continued, "but, but it's alright. You still gotta tell the crew though."

Link groaned, his head falling on the back of the couch. He didn't want to share this with anyone; a relationship was supposed to be a private thing. He wanted to keep it preserved in this beautiful bubble they had created because when it got out, when they finally told people, the potential for it all to fall apart grew.

They talked about when they would tell the crew, Stevie insisted on it being this week. Link wanted to make sure he and Noah had time alone to discuss how they would approach the situation and promised Stevie an answer of when soon. Before they knew it, Noah was getting a text message that she was needed for a writer's meeting and Link needed to head out with Rhett to scope shooting locations for Buddy System.

Stevie hugged Link before turning to hug Noah too, catching her by surprise, but whispering that she was happy for the younger woman regardless.

Then it was just Noah, Rhett, and Link as Stevie took her leave as a phone call rang through her cell.

"I need to go too," she said, holding up her phone and reminding them she had been summoned.

"Yeah," Rhett replied absentmindedly, tapping the keyboard of his own cell. "We gotta head out too. You ready bo?"

"Give me a sec", Link told him, crossing over to Noah and reaching for her automatically. "It's okay", he told her when she glanced over his shoulder at Rhett, "he won't care."

Rhett looked up, hearing Link make reference to him, just in time to see the shorter man dip his head and kiss Noah. He had a moment of shock, the feeling of ambivalence seeing Link attached to a woman that wasn't Christy briefly overwhelming. It alarmed him, how his body had automatically gone into flight or fight. He was so used to seeing the dark hair contrasting vividly with the blonde, that seeing the auburn locks had made him stop dead, but only for a second. Then he saw the way the tight muscles under Link's denim softened when she ran her hands across them, the way he spoke softer and smiled when he looked at her. Where there had been initial trepidation, now only existed relief and a sense of calm. It might take a while to get used to seeing Link with Noah, but he adjusted quickly to seeing his best friend happy for the first time in months.

Rhett was looking forward to having lunch with the girl.


	21. First Date

**WARNING: ADULT THEMES. This chapter is a bit longer since it did take some time for me to get it posted. Be patient with me, this story is going to continue to be updated. Swear! If you like what you read, leave me a comment and let me know. I love hearing from people!**

Noah worked on her script the best she could, but she felt the eyes on her. She and Link had told everyone that morning that they were dating in a meeting that lasted all of 15 minutes, nobody daring to ask any questions when Link had prompted them to if they had any. The fact that nobody had spoken up didn't mean that nobody had anything to say, which became apparent the second everyone filed out of the meeting room.

Things seemed very business-oriented, not that everyone didn't work hard every day, but conversations surrounding Noah or Rhett and Link tended toward professionalism. She had known that things might be a little weird at first, they both did, but that didn't make her any less uncomfortable with the sudden change of energy at Mythical Entertainment. Especially when the hair on the back of her neck stood as both Ellie and LIzzie stole glances in her direction every few minutes.

It typically wouldn't bother her, but the fact that she knew they were texting one another too made her eyes roll. She would need to confront them if she were to get any of her work done today.

"Everything okay?" She asked the room, still glancing down at her computer. Kevin and Micah were with Alex and Mike working on an episode of Ten Feet Tall.

"Yeah, why wouldn't it be?" Lizzie responded, giving a tight-lipped smile.

Noah looked between Ellie and Lizzie, tapping her pen anxiously on the cool glass of her desk.

"Mm, then why do you keep staring at me?"

Ellie looked like the cat that ate the canary, looking at Lizzie before she addressed Noah's question. "Okay, but like, we don't want to make things weird…"

"...yeah," Lizzie agreed. "But we kinda need to know."

"Know what?" Noah didn't like where this was headed.

"Well, you know," Ellie urged her to get it, a look lighting up her features.

Noah's dark auburn brow arched over her eye, lips pursing. She did know, and she had expected it. Ellie and Lizzie were the class gossips, the girls that had a really difficult time keeping to themselves and filtering their thoughts. They weren't mean, the exact opposite actually, but Noah found them both a little daft at times and tended to be closer to Jen, Emily, and the guys.

"Well," Ellie continued when Noah didn't say anything, "is Link like, good?"

"What?" Noah couldn't believe she had just asked her that. Even though she knew they'd been thinking it, actually asking was pretty ballsy.

"Is he, you know," Ellie continued, giving her a knowing look. "Like, he seems like he would be but you know for sure so...is he?"

Noah stared at Ellie before switching to Lizzie, who was watching her expectantly. She felt the blush creep up her chest and flare into her cheeks, painting them a dusty pink. She was equal parts annoyed, embarrassed, and astonished that they would even ask her. They weren't that close, they weren't on that level.

"I'm not answering that," she snapped, maybe a little too harshly but not caring at that moment.

"I'm sorry," Ellie answered quickly, "I just meant that since everyone knows now maybe we could talk about it."

"I'd rather not," Noah said, turning back to her work.

"I mean that's fine," Ellie replied, " _we_ were just talking about it and…"

"You were talking about Link and I having sex?" Noah challenged, her brows furrowed and her eyes glaring.

"I mean Noah, now that everyone knows you guys are dating that's all anyone is going to talk about for a while. You're both hot!" Ellie laughed, clearly trying to lighten the mood.

"I'm not doing this," Noah spat, slamming her pen down and pushing away from her desk, chair spinning as she stalked away. She knew that no harm had been meant by it, but it was still stupid enough to make her walk away. It had taken half a day, that was all.

Link nearly jumped out of his skin when the pounding resonated on his office door, turning around long enough to see Rhett jump up and cross the room. He couldn't see who it was, but he heard Rhett ask them if they were okay before he picked up on Noah's tone. He stood to see her just as Rhett nodded his head and exited the room, letting her come inside and shut the door. He saw immediately that her face was twisted in anger.

"What's wrong?" He asked, his hands coming up to grip over her hoodie-clad biceps.

"It's so stupid," she told him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Nothin' is stupid," he replied, his thumbs massaging the tense muscles under his palms.

She relaxed under his soft gaze, "Ellie and Lizzie, they asked me if you were good and it just- I got so mad..."

Noah didn't appreciate the look of humor on Link's face as he smirked at her, "they asked if I was good? Good at what?"

"Shut up," she told him, playfully shoving his arm.

"Ouch!" He mocked pain as he rubbed the spot she had made contact.

"Yeah right," Noah rolled her eyes, an act that immediately made Link's groin twitch. He loved when she defied him, a crazy concept considering his personality.

"Come here, silly girl," he told her, holding out a hand.

Noah immediately took it, letting him pull her to his chest and wrap his arms around her.

"I haven't had the chance to see you since we told 'em" he whispered to her crown before placing a kiss on it.

"Hm, well," she mumbled into the chest of his mustard sweater, "I already regret it."

He chuckled, his chest rumbling under her cheek, "we knew it might be like this. We talked about it that night after meetin' with Stevie n' Rhett."

"I know, but it doesn't mean I have to like it," she sighed, melting into Link as he folded against her.

"I know you don't, n' neither do I."

Noah pulled back, looking up at Link as his hands slid to her neck, his thumbs skimming the lines of her jaw. He loomed over her, their 9-inch height difference decidedly noticeable when she was pressed against him wearing her worn pair of black chucks. Her neck craned back as he dipped to kiss her, all the residual feelings of discontent melting away as his mouth moved lazily against hers.

"I'mma take you to dinner tonight," Link whispered in the space where their breath mingled.

"Like a date?" Noah whispered back, only half-serious. She knew they had to be careful in the public eye together, for now at least, so when he confirmed that it was in fact a date her eyes got a fraction bigger. "Are you serious?"

He laughed, "well yeah I'm serious. That okay?"

"Yeah! Of course, I just- what if someone sees us?"

Link could see the way her eyes tried to shield her excitement in case he changed his mind about going. They had never gone on a real date, spending their time together in the comfort of her apartment or behind closed doors. It was strategic. The video More of him announcing his divorce had just gone up that morning (he hadn't looked at comments yet) and they needed to let things settle before their dating got out. Regardless, he wanted to take her out and nothing was going to stop him. If someone saw them, well, he'd deal with it then.

"We'll go somewhere private, n' besides- I don't care anymore," he smiled. "It's Friday night, let's enjoy it together."

Link's smile was contagious, and Noah found herself matching it. They talked for a few more minutes, agreeing that he would pick her up at 8 before she sashayed back out to her workspace. Ellie and Lizzie were especially quiet, knowing where she had gone and that she must've told Link, and eventually apologized. Noah was quick to forgive, too focused on her date that night to be angry anymore.

Before she knew it, it was time for her to leave and then, just as fast, it was 7:30 and she was pacing around her little apartment fanning her hands around so the nude polish she had painted her nails would dry faster. She had changed her outfit three times before she settled on the long-sleeved, black and floral print dress. It was a little short to be wearing in January, but she loved the way it hugged her curves and flounced around her hips. She wore nude pumps to match the polish and make her legs look longer, and her berry lipstick complimented the green in her eyes. She felt confident and powerful, then she heard a knock on her door and immediately her knees turned to jello.

Link waited for her to answer, the bouquet of calla lilies hidden behind his blazer draped back. It was dark grey and slim fit, the light blue fabric of his tee-shirt underneath disappearing into the hem of his well fit black pants. He wore one of his favorite pairs of sneakers to keep the outfit casual, the pants sitting just a couple inches above his ankle. He felt good, even better when Noah opened the door and his breath caught in his chest.

"You-you look stunning," he told her, leaning in to kiss the corner of her mouth.

"So do you," she complimented, admiring him when he stood back from greeting her, "so handsome."

He smiled, pulling the flowers around to the front and offering them to her. "These are for you."

Noah's mouth formed a small 'o' before splitting into a grin, "they're beautiful!"

She accepted the bouquet, smelling the buds before telling him to follow her inside so she could put them in water and a few minutes later they were downstairs heading toward his car.

"Wait a sec," Link stopped her from opening the door, reaching for the handle himself.

Noah felt nervous, a ridiculous thought considering she was in a relationship with the man helping her into the passenger seat of his car. He gave her butterflies; a bundle of nerves as he half jogged around the front of the car to the driver's side, sliding into the seat and flashing his megawatt smile.

"Ready?" He asked, pulling the seatbelt across his chest and lap.

"I am," she answered, following suit. "Where we headed?"

"It's a surprise," he told her smugly, reaching out to give her hand a squeeze before pulling out of the lot.

They cruised through the streets of North Hollywood, chatting happily and laughing until their cheeks hurt. Noah spent equal time watching Link and glancing out the window, noting that the busy streets were starting to give way to breaks of palms and sand. Eventually, she realized they were near the beach, admiring the beautiful restaurant attached to the parking lot they had just pulled into.

"Don't even think about touchin' that door," he told her, hopping out of the car and tossing his keys to the valet before doing his half jog around to pull her door open, once again offering his hand.

"Such a gentleman," she told him, taking it and letting him assist her.

"Well, for now," he teased, leaning close to whisper in her ear. "Wait 'till I get you home later."

When he was this close, Noah could smell his expensive cologne and the woodsy scent of his pomade. With his breath hot on her ear she shivered and lost her appetite for food, growing hungry for something much different.

"Come on," he motioned. Chuckling before taking her hand and leading her toward the front door.

Link had kept his promise to take them somewhere private, seated in a room with a handful of other people that also seemed like they wanted nothing more than to stick to themselves. Their table was next to a full-length window, the view opening up to the beach just outside as the sky dipped to a dark grey and purple from the sun that had set less than an hour ago. He had even pulled her chair out for her and ordered them a bottle of wine. Noah had hearts in her eyes, never having been somewhere like this. It was beautiful.

"You see any of the comments on the new video," he asked her, cutting into his steak a little while later, and popping a piece of the red meat in his mouth.

Noah swallowed her bite of seared tuna before replying excitedly, "I did! I just looked through for a couple of minutes but everything seemed so positive!"

Link smiled, "everyone is really supportive, n' kind. There were some people talkin' 'bout what might've happened, but overall the Beasts received the news really well."

"That's gotta feel good," she told him, happily sipping her second glass of the sweet Moscato.

"Yeah, it feels like-like a weight's been lifted," he smiled warmly. "It's just another thing I 'n check off my list of things to do."

"That's great, babe," she assured him, meaning it.

Link stopped his chewing, staring at the beautiful creature across from him. She had never called him anything other than his name. Her term of endearment for him making a bloom of warmth spread from the center of his chest.

She caught him staring, glancing up at him and smiling, "what?"

He shook his head, "nothin', I just love you is all."

Her smile widened, the gap between her two front teeth causing heat to flare through Link's body. "I'll never get tired of hearing you say that."

"Good," he told her over a sip of his own wine, "cuz I ain't gettin' tired of sayin' it."

They flirted back and forth, Link admiring the way the golden glow of the restaurant lighting gave Noah an angelic touch. The conversation came easy when he was with her, laughing felt like breathing. He didn't know how he'd gotten lucky enough to have her, but he didn't think he'd ever be able to show how grateful he was that she loved him too. She was his phoenix; a flame of glory that came from the ashes.

Noah felt warm by the time their check had come, the wine mixing with her blood. Link reached quickly for the bill as she excused herself to the bathroom. Aside from her lipstick that needed a quick touch up, Noah's cheeks were flushed with pink blush thanks to the wine but she didn't mind.

When she came back, Link hopped up from his seat and offered her his arm. "Ready for dessert?"

She glanced at him as he led her toward the front doors, "but we're leaving."

He smirked, "I got one more place to stop."

She only smiled and quirked an eyebrow at him as he held the door open for her, waiting for his car before he got the door for her again. Noah started wondering if she'd ever touch a doorhandle again as they pulled out of the lot.

"I'm a, I'm meetin' with a lawyer next week," Link mentioned casually a bit down the road, his grip tightened a fraction of an inch on the steering wheel.

Noah tried to keep her smile under control. It wasn't that she was happy that Link would have to continue to face this stressful thing that had only just started, but he was moving forward and she knew that could only benefit the both of them and their relationship.

"I don't really have much to say 'bout it other than that, but I wanted you to know," he finished.

She reached for the hand he had dropped down to his leg, lacing her fingers through his long digits. "You okay?"

"Hm? Yeah," he snuck a glance at her before his gaze drifted back to the stretch of beachside highway before them. "I'mma be fine. I actually can't wait to get this whole thing goin' ya know?"

"Sure," she smiled, "I can imagine the pressure you feel right now."

"I know, n' I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate you bein' patient with me."

Noah was going to respond, but bright lights caught her eye. Link was pulling into the dirt lot of a little carnival, the energy surrounding it vivid and alive.

"Where are we!?" She exclaimed, eyes darting around the little place.

Link laughed at her childlike excitement, "I'd hoped you would like it here."

He parked the car and hopped out, coming around to grab her.

"Found this place with Rhett a few years ago," he told her, answering her previous question. "It's this winter carnival thing, I don't really know why it ain't here in the summer, but it's got the best funnel cakes n' deep-fried, well, everything. I thought it might be fun to get a few things to share."

Noah's grin split from ear to ear. She loved carnivals and everything that came with them. She didn't know how he had gotten this date so perfect, but she couldn't help but grab him and yank him back to her, pushing against him and pressing her lips against his.

"Mm," he mumbled, "that's better than any funnel cake…"

She chuckled, kissing him slowly before pulling back to look at him. "You gonna go win me a stuffed unicorn or what?"

Link winked, taking her hand and leading her through the small crowd of people toward the games spread across the beach. He did, indeed, win Noah a stuffed unicorn as well as a plastic dinosaur and he wasn't sure which one she was more excited about. She failed miserably at a dart-throwing game and shoved him playfully as he made fun of her for it. She shot back with the fact that he had almost hit Chase in the head with a dart and Link called a truce. When a cold wind blew in off the Pacific he had shrugged out of his blazer and slid it over Noah's shoulders even though he instantly had gotten goose-pimples, but he'd let her keep the jacket forever if she needed to.

"You were right," Noah said around a mouthful of deep-fried cheesecake, "this is so good."

"Told ya," Link responded, biting down on another one of his deep-fried Reeses.

"Thank you for planning this," she told him, finishing off the rest of her treat as they worked their way back to the car. "It's been a great night."

"I've had a lot of fun too," he followed suit with his dessert, tossing the boat in the trash and reaching for her hand again. "Just wish we could do it more…" She watched him smile sadly to himself and squeezed his hand as he continued. "This should't've been our first real date is all."

"It's fine. No, really, hear me out," she started to defend when he looked at her with a cocked brow. "None of this, like us, none of what's happened between us has happened like usual you know?"

"You'n say that again…"

"...right, so the fact that this is our first date, well, it just makes it even more special because, because I love you. Nothing is normal with us and our first date shouldn't have been the exception. It was perfect."

She didn't realize he had stopped walking until a tug on her arm jerked her back and her head was tipped back, his hands tangled in her hair. He tasted like Reeses when he kissed her, bending to meet her as she pushed onto her toes. They shared a sweet embrace near where the lights met the shadows, tall palms swaying in the gentle breeze.

Her hands ran up the expanse of his back, flat and splayed as she desperately wanted to feel as much of him as she could, scrunching the fabric of his shirt in her grip when he nipped playfully at her bottom lip before soothing the bite with his tongue. Her response was a throaty gasp before diving back in, their kiss a tangle of tongues and clashing teeth.

"Wanna get out of here?" He asked, pulling back just enough to whisper the words before capturing her mouth in his again.

"Hm," she mumbled against his mouth, "don't wanna wait."

Something sparked in Link at her loaded statement, something that had laid dormant for some time. He wasn't usually known for his spontaneity, preferring to have things well planned in advance. For instance, he had previously maintained every intention of remaining the perfect southern gentleman for the duration of their date. He had even toyed around with the idea of dropping her off at home and stealing a quick kiss goodnight after he walked her to her door, then he had seen her in that dress and them shoes. His plan had changed and he figured after the date he could ditch his southern roots for a bit, but now, now he was making out with her 20 feet from a crowd of people and he had the sudden urge to drag her off to his car as impatient as ever.

Well, he supposed he never was a patient man.

Link kissed her hard one more time before, "come on then."

He took her hand and practically pulled her the rest of the way to his SUV parked somewhere near the back of the lot. Noah's legs were a lot shorter than Link's and she found herself practically skipping to keep up with him, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth to stop the giggle she felt building in her throat at their rash decision to do this in his car on the beach. Just thinking those words made electricity cackle in her veins.

They reached the vehicle quickly, Link wasting no time in unlocking the doors as Noah took lead and yanked open the back door, hopping in. He followed suit, his hands finding her as soon as they were shut in and safely out of view from anyone that may happen to walk by.

She tossed his blazer on the front seat before relenting and finding him in a searing kiss, crawling onto his lap and carding her fingers through his hair. His hands traveled down the length of her body, under the hem of her dress, cupping her lacy clad ass in both of his palms. He gave it a squeeze, earning him a roll of her hips and a soft 'mew' of appreciation.

"I ain't done somethin' like this in a long time," he told her, voice husky and low as he leaned forward to graze her jaw with his teeth.

"Mm, me neither," she told him, grabbing at the fabric of his shirt again as he sunk his incisors into her flesh.

Noah groaned loud, head falling back as Link sucked her sunkissed flesh into his mouth, biting her _hard_ in what was sure to leave behind an impressive hickey. Heat flooded straight to her core, desperate to feel more of him. Every Time with him felt like the first, new and exciting. She was constantly in awe of how he looked with his pupils blown and lids heavy with lust, the way he felt when his muscles rippled under her hands, the way he tasted on her tongue.

She had no idea that Link was thinking the same thing about her, his tongue soothing the spot he had bruised with his mouth. Her sweet candy aroma filled his senses as she leaned forward, her hair falling loosely around her face and tempting him even further. "I want you," he told her, hand coming up to tangle in her thick auburn locks.

"Want you too," her voice was breathy and high as her hips continued to roll against his ever-present erection, hard and almost painful constrained behind the zipper of his pants.

"Tell me what you want," his breath was hot on her ear, pulling her lobe into his mouth briefly.

Noah's head was spinning, the combination of Link's deep voice and her lust taking up too much space. She couldn't respond, focused too much on how his left hand massaged the plump flesh of her bottom and the burn of his stubble against her cheek. She was so turned on she was losing her senses, so when a sharp smack ricocheted off the same cheek he was just massaging, her sharp gasp of surprise was genuine. Link's mouth devoured the noise in a meaningful pull of his tongue.

"I said tell me what you want," he demanded, his right fist tightening in her hair and pulling her head back to look down her nose at him.

Link's eyes were almost completely black, his irises a thin strip of sky blue against vast darkness. Noah admired him like this but it did nothing for her clarity of thoughts.

"I want, I want…" she stumbled on her words, earning her another quick slap on her bottom. She moaned again, her eyes falling shut. She'd been spanked before but it had been a decidedly long time and she couldn't remember being this attracted to the person who had done it. The heat from the spot he had pinked burned through her and met at the apex of her thighs. She opened her eyes and boldly told him, "I want you to do that again."

That struck a chord in him, one that hadn't been played in some time. Link had a bit of a wicked side at times, especially in the bedroom, and for longer than he cared to think about he'd had to snuff that out a bit. It wasn't that his sex life with Christy was boring, though it had been pretty vanilla there near the end, rather it had been almost non-existent in recent years. Now he had this pretty little redhead sitting on him, telling him she wanted him to spank her some more, and it felt like that dog Link had forced to sleep was raging back to life.

He fisted the fabric of her panties, "take these off."

His demand had her scrambling off his lap, somewhat awkwardly in the back of his car, and pulling her knees to her chest so she could pull the pink lace from her slender legs. His eyes were fixated on the way she moved, her skin smooth and velvety in the glow of the moonlight that had broken through the clouds. He glanced around the car quickly, no one was near them and the closest car was parked two spaces over. Satisfied he looked back at her, frozen for a moment when her striking green eyes caught his.

"Come'ere," he said, licking his lips and reaching for her. Their mouths found a rhythm, back and forth their tongues moved over the others until he lifted his arm above her and guided her across his lap, belly against the top of his thighs. "You sure you want this?" He gave her one more chance, breathing a sigh of relief when she rested on her elbows and nodded enthusiastically.

Link's hand smoothed over the soft skin of her backside, kneading flesh as he slid the fabric of her skirt up and around her waist. She was so damn beautiful. He admired her form, his breath catching in his throat as her hips swayed back and forth teasingly. Quirking an eyebrow at her tantalizing little show, Link gave her cheek one more squeeze before, "ready?" Her answer was in the form of an arched back and a nibble on that dang bottom lip of hers as she looked up at him over her right shoulder.

He brought his hand down in a quick flash, stinging her buttock and making her head drop to the seat of the car, a gasp escaping from between her teeth.

"You okay?" he asked, soothing the skin with a soft massage.

She looked back over her shoulder at him again, the look twisted onto her face a challenge. "Harder," she grit.

Link let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding, her bold display of passion driving him to answer her with another sharp smack, this time hard enough to shift her against his legs.

" _Uhn_ ," her head fell against the seat of the car again, a deep groan of pleasure puffed against the dark fabric. She rolled her hips back against his hand and link induced another feral growl from her when his hand sounded off against the now reddened skin.

His lips parted enough to let out a quiet moan as he soothed the warm skin beneath his palm. He was so hard he thought he might burst through his slacks at any moment. Noah's chest moved rapidly, her little pants of satisfaction the only noise against the quiet of the car. He could hear the carnival in the distance but it came second to her noises.

Noah's insides were boiling hot, spilling out of her in the form of uncontrollable gasps for air. She had never been this aroused before; wet before he had even touched her. She could feel her heartbeat in every one of her pulse points, desperate for more. "Do it again," she told him.

Link had never seen this side of her; teeth bared as she practically snarled her demand at him. She made his blood pump fast and hard through his veins, and he couldn't help his right hand from tangling in the waves of hair at the nape of her neck and arching her even further as he slapped her one more time, harder than the rest.

She howled, mouth hung open and her eyes open but practically unseeing as she felt his hand glide over her skin and down to her opening. Link ran a finger along her seam, damp from her arousal. He teased her opening, dipping a finger in just to his first knuckle before pulling it out. He found her bundle of nerves next, pressing the pad of his index finger against it and evoking another one of her throaty gasps, growing longer as he massaged the sensitive bud.

Noah's hips pressed further into his hand as his other one let her hair go, her head immediately falling back down, and traveled down the beautiful curve of her spine to grip the soft round skin he had painted. She wasn't expecting the smack that sounded off her flesh a moment later, the combination of that and the finger he had slid inside of her at the same time a beautiful mixture of pleasure and pain.

Link worked quick, finding the spongy skin embedded into her walls and massaged it in a scissoring motion while his hand not buried inside of her kneaded and rubbed her skin. He couldn't help the shallow movement of his hips, grinding against her belly in search of his own release as Noah wailed and slid further against the bench seat. She was flat across his lap now, her ass giving him the perfect view as his left hand worked fervently inside of her.

She mumbled incoherent, garbled words as he brought her closer and closer to her orgasm. His forearm had started to burn but Link refused to stop, moving against the friction of her tight hole. Noah was absolutely lost in pleasure. She pushed back against his hand and rolled her belly against the hard tent in his pants. She felt him pressing back against her but there wasn't much more she could do aside from ride this out. She couldn't think straight, couldn't see clearly when she opened her eyes, and it didn't take long at all for the ripples of her climax to pulse against his index and middle fingers.

He groaned as her eyes screwed shut, arm jutting out and her hand wrapping around his wrist tight enough to stop his movement. She ground her hips against him, mouth open in a silent scream as her orgasm ripped through her. Link glanced back and forth between her face and where she fucked herself with his hand, needing to get his member out of these uncomfortably tight constraints and bury it where his fingers were currently soaking.

Noah seemed to read his mind, letting go of him to push herself onto her knees and reaching for the button of his pants. Link leaned forward and caught her in a blazing hot kiss. They worked together to get his pants undone, hands an uncoordinated mess of bumped knuckles.

"Hurry," she urged him, "wanna fuck you-" Her crude words were swallowed by his mouth on hers again and again.

Finally, Link felt himself spring free. He shoved at the clothing, but she was already settling on top of him before he had even pushed the fabric down to his knees. Noah was wet enough, her pussy coated with her cum, that he slid inside of her with no hesitation straight to the hilt.

"Fuck, you're so tight," he grunted as she started moving against him. Regardless of him loosening her up with his fingers, she gripped him hard enough to push and pull the smooth skin.

Noah used his shoulder and the back of the car seat as leverage, bouncing up and down on Link's cock with reckless abandonment. He made a quick grab for the hem of his tee, pulling it up his stomach and out of the way of their colliding skin before his hands found her bum. He had a cheek in each palm, gripping her hard and guiding her at a more vigorous pace.

They fucked like wild animals, grunting and bucking against one another, driven even further by the fact that they could be caught by a perfect stranger at any moment. Noah was by far the loudest she had ever been, her cries piercing through the night. Link was more vocal too, his head falling back to rest on the seat. The sound of their skin slapping, wet and crude, bounced around the small space and made everything seem dirtier. It was _incredible_.

"I'm, fuck, I'mma cum...I'm-I'm…"

Link couldn't produce a full sentence, his eyes falling shut and his Adam's apple bobbing when Noah switched her tactic and wrapped her arms around his neck. She held herself steady against his chest, rolling and bouncing her hips in a vulgar slapping motion that drove him absolutely insane. His arms came up to wrap tightly around her waist, holding her skirt in place. That was all it took.

He came, and he came hard. Back arching off the seat and hips pressing into Noah with enough force to lift her with him. He squeezed her to him, not giving her the chance to move as he loudly exhaled and released himself over and over into her core. She held on, toes curling as he passed that pleasure precipice inside of her and beautiful pain bloomed and mixed with the bubbling contentment.

It took a few minutes for them both to come down. Link's arms shook as he let her go, not even realizing he had them locked so hard. Noah sat back on his lap, watching as he fought to catch his breath. She realized then the windows had fogged completely and they were both covered with a thin sheen of sweat. It was so hot, the air around them heavy.

"Every single time is the best time," she told him, his body rumbling beneath her as he chuckled.

"Can't argue with that," he hummed, eyes fluttering shut as he rested for another moment.

"I need some air," she told him.

He cracked one eye and looked up at her before leaning over to wipe at the window, creating a clearing for him to glance through. "Coast is clear."

She leaned forward and kissed him again, much slower this time. "Thank you, this has been such an amazing night. I'm so lucky," she whispered, pressing her forehead against his before dismounting and straightening herself out a bit.

"Darlin'," he caught her by surprise with his term of endearment, "we're just gettin' started."


	22. Panic

Link wasn't good at waiting. Never had been, and probably never would be. He always had this feeling of dread, this heavy weight on his chest when he knew something was or should be happening and wasn't. Just this morning he'd almost had a conniption on the 5 when he'd been stuck in a lane of traffic that wasn't moving quite as fast as the others. That feeling paled in comparison to how he felt right now.

He'd met with a lawyer regarding his divorce almost 3 weeks ago, and Christy still hadn't been served the papers. He knew it could take up to a month, but his anxiety was starting to get the best of him. Every time he was home he walked on eggshells waiting for her to address the paperwork he was sure she'd argue with him about, regardless of agreeing it was the best decision and saying she would sign them.

It was like waiting for the other pin to drop, teetering on the edge of a razor blade. He needed to start moving on with his life, but couldn't when he wasn't even sure what he was allowed to do. He'd been advised by his lawyer that he needed to go about life as normal as possible until both parties agreed on the terms of their separation, but Link hardly knew what was normal about pretending things were okay when they clearly weren't between the 2 adults.

They circled one another like sharks, Christy's eyes often stone cold. She'd approached him once when she realized his ring was missing but he'd brushed her off, told her he'd already said everything he needed to say for now and that she'd be hearing from his lawyers soon enough. That had gone about as well as he expected, and not for the first time they had broken out in a screaming match that had rattled the windows and her ring had wound up somewhere in the bottom of the pool. Link had slept in Lando's room that night, holding the small boy while he cried himself to sleep.

All of their children knew something was wrong, with Lily being the only one that had a more concrete idea of what was happening. It seemed like the only thing he and Christy could agree on was keeping things from the kids until they had a more solid plan. He wasn't quite sure what they were waiting for and supposed that maybe they were both just scared of having that conversation. One thing was for sure, it needed to happen sooner than later because Lincoln had withdrawn more than he'd ever done before, Lando broke out crying at random times, and Lily had started acting more like an adult than a teenage girl. Maybe it was just strange to explain to them that things were going to change when immediately they weren't? He still lived at home. Telling the kids he was leaving, then not going anywhere might just confuse them even more.

He had already thought that he would probably move out, give the house to Christy so the kids wouldn't have to be uprooted. In fact, he'd been perusing some real estate websites for rentals the past few days. He'd found a few condos he liked, but just as he figured to reach out to the realtor's he pulled back. Moving out was a big leap. Moving out meant a lot of hard work, the start of halving everything he owned, and the worst part, seeing his kids less. The alternate was staying where he was and prolonging the inevitable.

That didn't seem fair either.

He also didn't know when it was appropriate for him to leave. His lawyer told him not to do anything rash, he had too many high stake assets to risk, but he had already settled on giving Christy the house so why shouldn't he find a place? Maybe he could get Noah to help him. Her input seemed like it would be a good idea since she might be spending a lot of time there with him. Maybe someday she would even live there, too. Should he buy somewhere instead of renting?

"Link, you okay?"

He startled, Rhett's voice almost booming against the thoughts swirling in his mind. He looked around quickly at the other faces in the room, a hodgepodge of execs that were in the planning process with them about shooting Buddy System. He felt the heat in his neck, crawling up the tender skin from embarrassment at being caught

Link cleared his throat before answering, "Yeah, yeah, sorry. Where were we?"

Rhett gave him a bit of side-eye as he quickly caught him up on their meeting, but Link still found it difficult to concentrate after being called out. He was anxious, the meeting room feeling smaller than he remembered and a little hot. He'd noticed that in the past few days that the world had felt a bit smaller. He'd talked to Rhett about it a bit, Noah too. It was uncomfortable at best.

It seemed like ages before they had all settled on the same terms and had begun to disperse from the meeting room. Link couldn't even remember what they had agreed on as he pushed out into the hall and through the small crowd as fast as he could.

"Hey," Rhett called out to him as he pushed out into the hot California sun, "what was that in there?"

Link took a big breath, letting the fresh air fill his lungs and the heat warm his face. "Sorry, I-I been feelin' real shaky lately."

"You alright?" Rhett's face showed concern.

"Mm, I told you I been feelin'-" Link started, but Rhett stopped him.

"I mean right now, bo. You, you're shakin' more than usual and you look pale."

Link glanced down at his hands, the golden glow of daylight doing nothing to make his usual olive tone appear darker than the ghostly white that graced them. Rhett was right, he could see the shake in the tips of his fingers.

"I been waitin' for Christy to get the papers," Link answered, running a hand over his clammy face. "I ain't ever been a patient man, you know that."

"I know, but you ain't been this unfocused since all this started," Rhett reached for his keys as they got to his car, clicking the set to unlock the doors. "Somethin' else botherin' you?"

Link jumped into the passenger seat, pulling the seatbelt across his chest. It was true, he hadn't been this bad in a while. He'd had an attack in his office the day he'd dreamt of Noah, but he'd been able to keep his cool about him for the most part. It was the waiting; the waiting was killing him. The not knowing was too heavy, and staying put through it all was even worse. Every time he pulled his car into his driveway he had to close his eyes and steady his breath for a few minutes before going inside.

"You think it'd be stupid of me to move out?" He asked after a minute.

"That what got you all over the place?" Rhett asked his friend, starting to guide the pair out of the lot and back toward their office.

"I guess," Link answered honestly, staring out the window. "I been lookin' at places here'n there. Found a couple nice ones not far from the studio."

"Yeah? You gonna go look at 'em?"

"Don't know," Link told the bearded man, "I think about it n' then I just, can't."

"Why not?"

"Don't you think if I knew why not I'd have done it by now?" Link quipped, earning him an eyebrow from Rhett.

"I'mma let the attitude slide-"

"-sorry-"

"-what's the lawyer say?"

"He says I just need to live my life as usual. Says I got too much to lose to mess around, but-but I'm givin' her the house-"

"When you decide that?" Rhett spared a glance at Link, steering the Toyota onto the freeway.

"I mean, don't you think it makes sense with the kids? I don't want 'em havin' to go through too much change."

"Mm," Rhett grunt, "y'all decide what you're doin' with custody yet?"

He hated that word, custody. There shouldn't have to be a "custody" agreement between him and Christy regarding their children, but he knew there had to be.

Link swallowed hard, Adam's apple bobbing. "We ain't really talked 'bout that yet."

Rhett could hear the defeat in Link's voice, small and unsure. His kids continued to be a sore subject for him and he knew that the smaller man was worried that Christy would try to take them back to North Carolina. He'd asked Jessie once if she'd heard what the blonde's plans were but she hadn't. In fact, Jessie had mentioned that Christy had explicitly been avoiding the topic of her divorce altogether.

"Well, I guess y'all can just figure that out when ya need to…"

Rhett wanted to talk to him about it more, but he was nervous to broach the topic when Link already looked sick. He'd known Link almost his whole life and even though they were adults, Rhett still felt like he needed to protect the man at all costs. Almost on cue Link's phone 'ping'ed with a text message. If by nothing other than instinct, Link shook uncontrollably as he slid the screen to unlock; he knew what it was before even reading it.

' _I'm staring at our divorce papers right now. I'll sign them as I promised, but I'm taking our kids to North Carolina for a few days. Don't call. Don't follow us. We'll be back and I want you gone by then. You'll hear from my lawyers soon.'_

This was it then. It was starting. He was prepared for this, had been waiting for it, and yet the world around him was disappearing as his vision tunneled. He couldn't breathe. He should've just moved out when he had initially thought about it. They should've just talked to the kids, why did he think it was a good idea to wait to address the hard stuff? Now the hard stuff was here and he wasn't prepared.

It was immediate. It struck him all at once, a panic attack like he'd had that first night. His lungs burned as he gasped for oxygen, his lungs expanding and contracting at a rapid rate. He couldn't stop thinking about how much shit he was getting into, regardless of the choices he had made. Don't come home? She was taking the kids to North Carolina? Was it all a precursor to her taking them from him? His mind swirled and dipped and flipped all over the place. He felt out of control.

Rhett heard Link cry out. He heard him try to breathe and he heard him cuss under his breath when he couldn't. Glancing at his friend he saw the sheer terror on his ghost-white face.

"Hey man!" Rhett reached for him, one hand still on the steering wheel. "Link! Breathe man!"

Link blinked, eyes bleary and unfocused. Rhett sounded far away like he was underwater. He shouldn't have been set off like this. He had never suffered like this before Christy's infidelity. Yeah, sure he'd always had a bit of anxiety but he'd never been this bad. He was scared

"Link!" Rhett yelled, trying to get Link to calm down. "Shit! Damnit!"

Rhett cussing was the last thing Link heard before everything went black.

Noah had been helping Jen sort through the mail when she heard the news. Rhett had called Stevie on his way to the hospital; Link had a panic attack and stopped breathing, passing out against the dash of Rhett's car. She hadn't known what to do, her own panic setting in when she had realized what had happened. She had to leave, go to the hospital and be with Link. There was no other option and Stevie had driven like a bat out of Hell to get them both there as quickly as possible.

Now she sat, as impatient as ever, in the waiting room while a doctor talked to Rhett near the doors leading to the back rooms where Link was. She eyed them, chewing on her lip. She'd known Link to get worked up before, but not like this.

She sat forward when Rhett parted ways with the doctor.

"He's awake," he said, taking a seat next to Stevie and letting out a deep breath. "They're doin' a few tests cuz he went without breathin' for a bit. Guess he's pretty outta it, but the doc says he thinks he'll be fine."

"All of this from a panic attack?" Stevie watched Rhett for his reaction.

"Seems like it. He's been worked up lately, but I ain't seen him this bad since the night he caught Christy cheatin'."

"Mm," Stevie mumbled, her phone ringing off in her pocket. She pulled the phone out, glancing at the caller before back up at Rhett. "Do you know what set him off?"

Rhett's brows drew down, "he got a text from Christy. I didn't get a chance to read it though, just saw her name for a second after he hit the dash."

Stevie nodded, glancing back down at her own phone in her hand. "It's Ben calling. I should probably let the crew know what's going on and head back to get things back on track. Call me if anything changes."

Rhett nodded, watching as Stevie stood. She looked at Noah, opening her mouth to address the redhead before the bearded man interjected, "I'll get her back, don't worry." Stevie seemed to accept that as she smiled, tight-lipped, before turning to head out.

Noah's brain was bouncing all over, barely registering the exchange in front of her beyond hearing that this whole thing had been a severe rendition of a panic attack. Link had told her that he'd had this sort of thing happen to him before, but she'd been under the impression that he had it a bit more under control lately. She wishes she would've known that he still suffered, but she couldn't hold it against him for not telling her. Link was trying to move on from his past. He'd told her recently that he was worried about his kids, about Christy taking them, but she had done her best to calm his nerves and it seemed to work for a little while at least.

"Did the doctor say when we could go see him?" She peered up at Rhett's taller frame as he ran a hand across his beard.

"Shouldn't be too long, I hope." He held her gaze, "how you holdin' up?"

Noah shook her head, "I don't know."

"He'll be fine-" Rhett started before Noah cut him off with a wave of her hand.

"No, I mean I know. I just, I-" Noah struggled to find the words. She knew he was going to be okay, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she had never been so scared before. All she had heard was "Link" and "stopped breathing" and her heart had stopped beating for a fleeting moment. She had known she loved him, she'd felt it in her bones, but she had no idea just how deep he was embedded in her bones and that terrified her. "I'm scared."

Admitting it made her eyes prick with tears. She couldn't imagine what it might have felt like if he wouldn't be okay, and she was disappointed that she couldn't be the balm he needed for this burning pain he was in. Was she enough for him? What if she wasn't? That only made her head spin more.

Rhett blinked back, his eyes bouncing around her face before he pushed up to his feet and crossed the small space to take the chair next to her. Noah felt his arm come up and hang from her shoulders, uncomfortable at first, before gently urging her to lean against him. She obliged, her head coming to rest near his shoulder as she settled into him. It felt foreign, being comforted by Rhett, but she was grateful.

"You'll be okay too," he whispered. Noah's bottom lip pulled between her teeth as he continued. "I ain't seen Link actin' more, Linkish? Yeah, Linkish. He ain't been more himself then he been since you n' him...don't let this scare you too much. He loves you."

She bit back the tears she felt and swiped at her eyes quickly. She felt silly for being this emotional. "Thank you. I'm sorry, I just-this is so new."

"You ain't gotta apologize-"

"-I know, I just, it's silly. Link's the one that's in the hospital and you're out here having to comfort me when we, when you're his friend not mine."

"We can be friends," Rhett laughed. "Gonna have to be if you're gonna be with him."

Noah found herself smiling against the fabric of his shirt, "yeah, he's mentioned the same thing."

"Yeah? He warn you that I ain't always this nice when you get to know me more?" he joked, his arm tightening around her shoulder just a bit.

"I have eyes," Noah teased, "I didn't need him to tell me that."

Rhett had started to reply when his attention was pulled to the set of elevator doors that had slid open, revealing Christy looking flustered. The blonde's eyes met his before flickering to the younger girl tucked under his arm and back to him. "Scuse me," he mumbled quickly, glancing toward Noah, removing his arm from around her and pushing himself out of the chair.

Noah watched Rhett approach the blonde. He bent to her, albeit a little hesitantly, wrapping her in a stiff hug before launching into what she figured must be the story of what happened. Christy nodded along, her face strained and mouth pursed as she pointedly avoided looking in her direction. Noah felt like an outsider, watching them converse. She felt like she shouldn't be here, among these people that had known one another for so long. She sat alone on the cool steel chair, her heart pounding hard in her chest.

Then Christy made eye contact with her from across the room, her spine straightening and her eyes narrowing.

Noah felt her breath catch in the back of her throat. She remembered the night she had first met Christy at the wrap party. The way Christy looked at her now was far from the warm smile she offered almost 2 months ago. The group crossed back over to where the duo had been sitting, Noah shifting in her seat as the new addition sat across from her. Rhett was visibly uncomfortable as he looked back and forth between the women, ultimately choosing his seat next to Noah.

She peered at Christy, wondering if she should say anything to her. There was a tension in the air, a heaviness that surrounded them. The implication was there; Noah knew that there could only be one reason why she was there and that at this point Christy had to know about her and Link.

Christy stole glances at the little redhead across from her as well. She tried to think about anything other than the girl fucking her husband, but it was nearly impossible. She shouldn't hate her, it was against Christy's nature to be so angry all the time but the jealousy coursed through her as she observed the younger woman.

Noah was beautiful, something that she couldn't deny. She tried her best not to notice that fact, but it was hard to miss as the younger woman tucked a piece of her soft red hair behind her pierced ear with a well-manicured hand. Her neck was long and elegant, dipping down to smooth skin that Christy was sure would be soft and free from the marks she had earned from motherhood. She had her bottom lip worried between her teeth, and Christy visibly rolled her eyes at the cute gap between the front two.

' _Of course she would have a perfect gap, why wouldn't she?'_

Christy accepted that she was getting a divorce, but it was still too fresh to have Noah so near. She wanted to hit her. She wanted to scream and kick, and shake her until her perfectly gapped teeth rattled. Instead, she stayed rooted to her seat, anger simmering the more she thought about the papers she had left sitting on Link's desk at home, unsigned until she spoke with her lawyer tomorrow and then she would be on an airplane home with her kids. She had to get out of here without him. She knew he would spend his time with Noah while she was away and that infuriated her, but Christy was done. She needed space. This might have all started because of her own actions, but she refused to believe that this divorce was only her fault and it was really difficult not to put any blame on the girl sitting a few feet from her.

Almost an hour passed with Rhett being the only one offering anything for conversation, Christy occasionally offering a word or two, before the doctor came out. Christy hopped out of her seat first, offering a hand to the doctor and shaking it with an "I'm his wife" attached. It seemed natural, something that the older woman had done a number of times without thinking. It seemed strange now, but she was so fluid and seamless. Just another reminder that she had been married to Link for a long time.

Noah fingered the hem of her sweater as the doctor led Christy down the hall, Rhett on their heels, as he began to explain how Link was awake and talking with the nurse. She was alone, left with her racing thoughts. Having Christy here was awkward if for no other reason than the unspoken words that needed to be said between them, but that was second to the anticipation of seeing Link after the emotional rollercoaster these few hours had been.

She didn't have to wait long.

She heard him before she saw him, cussing about this or that before he came flying around the corner of the hall. He was in his normal clothes, but his hair was a mess and Noah could see the bandages near his wrist indicating there had been an IV. She was on her feet in a second as his eyes scanned the room. It only took him a moment to find her, forgetting the nurse that had chased him down the hall with the paperwork he very clearly didn't care about. He reached her in a few big strides.

"I was so worried-" Noah started, but was cut short when Link reached down and wrapped his arms around her waist, lifting her in one swift motion and leaving her toes dangling above the floor.

"Don't be worried," he mumbled into the crook of her shoulder. "'M okay. Better now that you're here."

"What happened?"

She felt her toes hit the floor again, Link's arms slipping from around her waist. Pulling back to look at him, Noah noticed how tired he looked. He was smiling softly, but it didn't reach his eyes. Her brow furrowed, drawing his gaze to her face. He reached a thumb up, smoothing the lines before he answered.

"I'll tell you all about it, but can we get out of here first?"

"Yeah, man," Rhett answered from behind his back, Link spinning to look at his friend who was holding the stack of release forms he had all but forgotten about. "I'll take y'all wherever you need to go."

"My apartment?" Noah asked Link, who only nodded before looking past Rhett at Christy hovering near the end of the hall.

"Come on," he said, reaching to take her hand.

Noah saw the way Christy looked at them as they walked away, her hand tucked in Link's much bigger one. She saw the way the blonde's eyes glistened and narrow, her jaw tense and body rigid. She felt the angry energy radiating throughout the room; Link ignoring the exchange of glances between the two women as he led the shorter one out through the double doors and too sanitized hospital.

Christy watched, hating herself almost as much as she hated them, and hating the fact that there was so much hate in her heart. She pulled her phone out as the doors shut behind their retreating backs, her finger hovering over the number of her own deep secret. She brought the phone up to her ear, waiting for him to answer. After a moment he did.

"David?" Christy spoke into the phone, "I'm ready. When can we meet?"


	23. Take Love Back

**WARNING: SMUT! This chapter is a bit of a smut sandwich with fluff on either end. I admit that it's a bit of a filler, but it turned out longer than I expected and our love birds need some calm, filler scenes before shit goes down again. Let me know what you think, if you like this story, and if you want me to continue it! Thanks, everyone!**

"Are you sure this is okay?"

"'Course it's okay."

"I just want to make sure-"

"Hey," Link took his eyes off the road just long enough to cast Noah a reassuring glance, "if I didn't want this to happen, it wouldn't be. Okay?"

Noah watched him smile to himself as he turned back to watch the road, her bottom lip pulling between her teeth as she turned back to watch the scenes outside his car. She had stopped recognizing the neighborhood a few minutes ago as the familiar brick apartment complexes and plazas gave way to single-family houses and yards. She knew they wouldn't be meeting anyone where they were going, but her nerves were still twisting up inside of her stomach after the events of a few days prior.

Link, and Jade for that matter, had been staying with her since he had left the hospital. Christy had stayed true to her word and had packed her and the kids up, heading to North Carolina for a bit. Link had called his lawyers almost immediately and had been advised that he should not reach out to her, but instead he should let her taking them out of school speak for itself. He hadn't been thrilled with that idea, but the bigger picture was more important, so he had cussed, yelled, and even punched a wall but he hadn't called.

Noah looked back at Link, his bruised knuckles gripping the steering wheel as he turned it and swung his Scion into the driveway. Her attention was drawn away from him as he pulled up to the garage door, something he had done a thousand times before, and out to the house that lay before her. She hadn't known what to expect when she imagined Link's home, but her expectations weren't far off as her eyes took in the well-landscaped lawn leading up to the cute yellow door.

She hadn't really planned on ever coming here, but Jade was almost out of food and Link needed to grab some more clothes and a few things from his office for work, so she had ridden with him when he asked her to. Noah didn't think much of it until after they were already on their way and her own anxiety started to make its appearance at being in this place that his family had existed for years.

She hadn't realized that she had hesitated so much until she saw Link watching her through the windshield, his brows drawn down over his blue eyes. He was nervous, she could tell. He hadn't been here in a few days, almost none of his memories from this place for months were good ones, and she knew he could feel her hesitation. Hoping that he didn't think it was about him, Noah quickly took a big breath and hopped out of the car, rounding the front to meet him.

"You okay?" He asked her as he reached for her hand.

She took it, letting herself be pulled against him. "I'm fine, you okay?"

His eyes danced around her face, looking for the words she wasn't saying, ignoring her question and firing back with his own. "You sure?"

Noah's smile faltered for just a minute. "I'm okay, swear. I just, I'm nervous is all."

Link stooped down to her shorter frame, pressing his lips against hers warm and soft. She breathed out her nose, melting even more against him when he pulled away and whispered between them, "it's alright. I want you here."

She was grateful that he understood without her having to say anything. He knew her well at this point, knew that she still had these walls built up around her and that she was still scared he might change his mind at any moment. Noah nodded her head, letting herself trust in what he had told her. Link leaned down to kiss her one last time before pulling her along to the door, only letting go to find the key on his key ring.

Noah let her eyes wander around the room as she made her way inside. The house was nice, a lot nicer than her apartment, and she suddenly felt self-conscious about her little space.

"Would you be willin' to grab Jade's dog food?" Link asked, tossing his keys into a bowl near the hall and making his way through the adjoining archway. "It's in the pantry, in the kitchen."

Noah agreed, moving around the couch and making her way toward where he had pointed. He assured her that he'd just be a minute getting some other things he needed before he disappeared down the hall. She moved through his house, looking at pictures of his kids, Jade, a picture of him and Christy on their wedding day. She laughed a little to herself at his ridiculous facial hair and smiled warmly to herself at the wings that he had sported for so long. She touched the blankets as she moved around the couch, checking out the arrangement of little plants and stones on the table next to the doors leading out to a pool.

Eventually, she found herself in the kitchen, again relishing in how everything seemed to have its own spot. It seemed strange that everything was so quiet, sitting silently and closed up when it was once so filled with loud noise and life. Noah found Jade's food, pulling it out and taking it to sit near the front door while she imagined Link's three kids running through the hall or up and down the stairs. She smiled, hoping to one day get to officially meet them even if the thought made her tummy twist in knots.

Thinking of Link made her wonder where he might be, so she took herself down the hall he had himself disappeared down just a handful of minutes ago. Her hand trailed along the hall as she went, fingers dancing briefly across a nice lamp that seemed out of place where it sat, before she came to an open door leading into what she could see was a large bedroom.

Link stood there, his back to her and his denim shirt pulled tight across his muscles as he held his arms across his chest. He was staring at the bed, unmoving and clearly deep in thought. Noah approached him slowly, the muscle in his shoulder twitching as her slim fingers came to rest on it.

"Hey," she spoke low, almost a whisper, "you okay?"

Link cleared his throat before answering, "Yeah, yeah. I'm okay. I just…the bed ain't made."

Noah looked at the covers, briefly noting that they were strewn about and a pillow lay flattened near the center of the mattress. She looked back at him, a dark red brow arching in confusion.

"Christy ain't one to leave the bed a mess," he continued, moving forward to get inside the bed table for his spare glasses and chapstick. The wrapper sticking out from under the bed caught his attention.

Link wasn't mad when he pulled out the empty condom wrapper. He and Christy weren't together any longer and he was with Noah, so even if he had been angry, he wouldn't have been in the right. So no, he wasn't mad that his soon to be ex-wife was sleeping with someone. He was more annoyed that she had put up such a fuss about him seeing someone, making him promise to keep Noah away from their children, when she had brought another man into their home where his children lived.

That wasn't fair at all, and he was sure going to have a word with her about that. She was allowed to move on, in fact, he was glad that she was, but to be so hypocritical about it was unreal. He'd been bending over backwards, or so it felt, to meet her demands to try and make her happy enough during this whole fiasco and what she go and do? Everything that she had made him promise not to do.

Link tossed the wrapper on the bed, grabbing his things from the table and shoving them in his pockets a little too aggressively before moving into the bathroom. He didn't even hear Noah sneak in behind him.

"Babe?" He spun to look at her, worrying that beautiful lip between her teeth. She must've seen him find the wrapper and now she was waiting for him to react.

"Hey, yeah," he ran a hand through his hair, sniffing, "it's fine. I'm fine. I'm, uh, I'm- "

"What do you need from me?" She cut him off, her hand coming up to move across his neck and thread the hair on the back of his neck.

Link studied her face for a second, eyes drinking in her smooth skin and concerned gaze. Her mouth was almost turned into a frown, leaning into him. Her sweet scent surrounded him, seeping into his pores and drawing out all the negative energy that had started to cloud his mind. She was all he could see, everything he needed right now to ease the rest of his sour mood.

He leaned down to catch her mouth in his, tasting her as he pushed his tongue past the seams of her lips. It was easier for him to show her what he needed, to take back love in the home where he had lost it, than try to explain it when he never was good at words. So instead he sunk his teeth into her lip, eliciting a gasp that he swallowed before it even had time to fully form, and swooped to pick her up and set atop the counter next to the sink. He needed to fill the room with the sounds of pleasure instead of anger, come full circle and end his life in this house how he started it. Link didn't care if Christy had found someone new because so had he, and right now he was going to make love instead of focusing on the war.

Noah saw his eyes shift to hunger before he dove into her. They had done this long enough at this point for her to catch on when he just needed her, body and soul, instead of talking it out. He had just pulled a condom wrapper from under the bed he had shared with Christy, the bed she had assumed he had caught his almost ex-wife in with another man nine months ago. She felt it in the way his mouth devoured her and his hands pushed her cardigan off her shoulders, snaking their way under the tee she wore and pressed into her skin. He needed closure and she was going to let him take it any way he needed to.

Her body responded to him immediately as she worked at the buttons of his shirt, tearing at them without thought as Link's left hand came up to cradle her neck and pull at the hem of her shirt as his mouth and teeth marked the tender skin underneath.

"Link," she moaned, "uhn, Link…"

"Hmm," he mumbled, his hands going straight for her face again and sliding back to lace his fingers through her hair, yanking her head back.

He brought himself in for another kiss, Noah leaning into him. Grasping at the waist of his t-shirt, she brought their bodies together. Unmistakable heat, hardened in a bulge below his hips pressed against her core and separated them by too many layers of clothing.

"Take this off," she commanded between sloppy kisses, tugging at the bottom of his shirt.

Link stepped back long enough to shrug out of the shirt Noah had hastily unbuttoned, then reached up behind him to pull the fabric of his undershirt up and off. She followed suit, barely having time to chuck her own shirt somewhere across the room before he was back on her, grunting against her mouth when she bit his lip, forcing him to step closer.

Noah's head was swimming, her back pressing against the cold mirror behind her. His hands had dropped to tug at her leggings, stopping only to wait for her to lift her hips allowing him to tear the fabric from her legs before stepping back between them. She grabbed fistfuls of his dark locks, pulling him closer in bliss and knocking him against the counter. He grunted, causing Noah to arch her body against his subconsciously. Link slid his right arm down, his hand sliding under her ass and pulling her to the edge as her torso pressed flush against his.

Groaning, their naked flesh met heatedly together. His mouth was working its way downwards, starting from collarbone to shoulder as his teeth sunk into her skin before his tongue soothed the spots. His hands popped the clasp on her bra with expert precision before coming around to dance across from one breast to the other, puckering up the little peach buds between skillful fingertips. Noah felt like she was on fire. Link's mouth burned her with every nip and flick of his tongue.

Moaning, she dug her nails into his hair and pulled him up abruptly. Kissing him deeply, their mouths crashed together in swirling tongues and clacking teeth. Link felt fire and ice in his veins, losing control quickly and forgetting where he even was as they consumed one another over and over. He rasped against her mouth, exhaling harshly and breaking the embrace to shoot a molten gaze at her before dipping low to bring his lips to her chest, licking and sucking hard at her flesh. Noah shuddered and yelped as Link reached around to grip her tightly, and wedge them impossibly closer.

She stretched hurriedly down to undo his jeans, her fingers shaking as she worked the little button through the loop and pushed them down. After they were far enough down his hips, she wasted no time, reaching into his boxer briefs to fasten a hand around his hot length, velvet stretched over hard steel, easing it out of the elastic with one hand and pushing the briefs down with the other.

He hissed against her skin, pulling back to glance down their bodies at her nimble fingers wrapped around his rock-hard erection before shooting back up to her face and reaching for the silky panties that wrapped around her hips. Noah loved when his pupils were blown out, the blue irises almost completely hidden behind the dark expanse.

In one smooth move he had dragged her panties down and left them hanging from one ankle. He reached between them, his finger teasing her slit. Noah leaned her head back against the mirror, a breathy moan escaping from between her lips as her hand continued to stroke him. Link watched his middle finger sink inside of her, his breath coming out in shaky breaths as he pulled it back out, mesmerized by the slick coating.

"Fuck me," he heard her brazen little gasp, watching him through a veil of lashes to see how he would respond to her order.

Link didn't need to be told twice.

"Huhn," he grunted mutedly, trembling as he braced a hand next to Noah's hip on the counter and pressed the head of his cock against her, barely sliding inside. She reached for him greedily, bucking her pelvis towards him with intensity as his hips locked and he bottomed out, pushing deep inside of her. She threw her head back, eyes screwing shut against the feeling of being filled to the brim. Moaning deep, he began thrusting hard, forceful and insistent.

Noah wrapped her legs around Link heatedly, bringing him further against her and making the penetration deeper as she bounced against him. Her hand found its way to his abdomen, the heat inside of her only growing as the muscles rippled against her palm with every thrust. He heaved forward against her, throaty sounds leaving him and sweat wetting his face as Noah grabbed at him and dragged him down for an embrace. It was messy and intense, the need for release only growing inside of them both.

"Link..." she choked, lungs forcing the air out rhythmically as their thrusts met one another's on the little countertop.

Noah's hips bounced dangerously near the edge of the counter, practically hanging off of Link's hips. She had to drop a leg to keep from falling. Link took the opportunity to slide out of her and spin her around, pressing into her from behind with no hesitation. Noah cried out, falling forward and catching herself against the hard surface as Link picked right back off where he left off. She had to push her ass back into him to keep her hipbones from smacking into the counter.

Link's hands traveled down her back, his nails sinking into the flesh of her hips, pulling and pushing her. He enjoyed watching her bum bounce and slap against his pelvis. He didn't think it could possibly get any hotter until he glanced up and saw them in the mirror behind the sink. Noah looked absolutely breathtaking with her hair wild, eyes shut and body covered in a thin sheen of sweat as she fucked back into him. Her tits bounced beautifully with every thrust.

His rhythm picked up, grinding uncontrollably, lost chasing his release as he watched them in the mirror; primal and unhinged.

"Shit, oh fuck."

His crude language caused her to open her eyes, meeting him over her own shoulder in the mirror. It was like electricity when their eyes connected. Noah's darkened and her jaw clenched, exposing her teeth as she practically growled. The noise shot straight to Link's cock, twitching as it slid in and out of Noah's tight hole. She felt his hips grow erratic, her eyes flitting down to his lower stomach as she watched them connect over and over. Link started to fuck her even harder, employing her hand to shoot up and press against the cool glass as her hip smacked the counter. She gasped, the pain mixing with the pleasure in a cocktail of thrilling excitement.

Link panted, bringing a hand up to rest above Noah's against the cool glass. He was about to explode, veins pulsing quickly, shivers working through his legs as they started to cramp. He kept pushing through, rolling into her and pushing her further against the mirror as her breath came out in puffs of hot condensation against the surface. Noah's core welled up tightly between her legs, toes curling against the plush throw rug at her feet. Link concentrated his motions, bucking deeper with each controlled push and pull, panting hotly onto her shoulder. His knees were starting to tremble, groaning harshly as the spring inside of her snapped and she constricted around him. She fell apart, stars dancing behind her eyes and every muscle clamping down. His hips trembled as wave after wave of her orgasm sucked him deeper inside of her.

Link cracked, tensing and stilling inside Noah with one last, long thrust forward. He hissed, just as she found her voice again and strangled moans leaked out from between her clenched teeth. Shuddering and trembling with his release, he fell onto her with a breathless sigh, holding himself steady as they both continued to shiver in the aftermath of their pleasure.

The bathroom smelled like a mix of sweat, sex, and both of their perfume and cologne choices. It was heady and musky, intoxicating to both of them. They stayed like that for a while, relaxing muscles one at a time and hearing their breathing return to normal as the moments ticked by. Link moved back first, his fingers working small circles on her skin as he pulled her up too.

Noah felt sticky between her thighs, turning a little uncomfortably to face Link as his cum leaked out of her as she stood. The goosebumps formed against her cooling skin, both of them feeling the chill in the air as the heat they had created between them dissipated. Link brought his forehead down to hers, his nose grazing against hers and his lips whispering just above her own.

"I love you," he spoke low into the small space between them.

He couldn't see it, but he heard her smile in her response.

"I love you, too."

He'd said it before, they both had, but something about this moment gave the words a concrete meaning. The love they shared, it was special, binding, and had always been seeding in them just waiting to bloom.

"I'm sticky," Noah grumbled after a minute, pulling a chuckle from Link that crinkled the corner of his eyes.

"There's a shower," he told her, throwing a nod over his shoulder toward the huge glass shower in the corner of the room, a smirk gracing his features.

She reached up and swiped at some dark hair sticking to his forehead, admiring how the rest stuck up in messy tufts.

"You gonna join me?" She teased.

"I guess I'm kinda sticky too, huh?"

Noah crinkled her face and held up her thumb and pointer finger, just barely apart.

"Oh, just a little bit?" Link laughed, copying her finger movements.

"Little bit," Noah responded, giggling as he reached out and grabbed her hand.

"Come on," he told her, shaking his head and pulling her toward the other side of the room.

Link's towel was exactly where he had left it hanging. Noah watched as he moved across to a linen closet, bringing her back a fluffy one of her own and reaching in to turn the knob all the way to hot. They had never showered together, the action seeming more intimate to them than the sex they had just had. When the shower started to steam up they hopped in, hot water warmed them both up and Noah was pleasantly surprised when Link reached over and turned on a second showerhead.

"Ugh, I need a shower like this," she said, tipping her head back under the hot stream.

"We can make that happen," Link quipped.

Noah opened her eyes, glancing across the shower at Link who had his own head tipped back.

"Oh, can we?" She joked, glancing around the shower and spotting some shampoo. It was lavender. She didn't feel right using it so instead she opted to reach for the bottle of men's instead.

"Well, yeah," he told her, taking the bottle for himself when she was done and turning the water off so he could lather up. Noah was moderately taken back, but she had heard him multiple times talk about his shower habits on the show so it was more humbling than anything to actually witness it. "We'll find us a shower just like this in the new house."

She stared at him, the water running down her face as the weight of what he had just said seemed to go over his head.

He switched the water back on, moving underneath it and rinsing the suds from his hair. It looked jet black when wet, slicked back as he ran a hand over his face to squeegee water from it. He found her looking at him when he opened his eyes.

"What?" He asked, reaching for his loofa.

Noah shook her head, "nothing I just, you said we'll find _us_ a shower…in a new house..."

Link heard what she said, repeating his words that soaked into his skin along with the water. Had he said that out loud? He'd thought a lot about her, what it might be to live with her. Especially so since he'd been staying with her for a few days, but it was fast. They'd only been sleeping together for a little over three months, dating for about a month. It'd be crazy to move in with each other now, right? He suddenly didn't think so but he didn't want to scare her away.

"I mean, I-I, I'm thinking out loud, future, for the future, maybe, hopefully?" Link stammered.

Noah smiled; his stutter was cute. She could hardly believe that this nervous man was the same guy that had confidently fucked her against a counter not even 10 minutes ago.

"Hopefully," she repeated his sentiment, effectively causing his face to split into a Cheshire grin.

They stared at one another, smiling like fools and thinking about what it might be like to have this be their new norm. Link was the first to break, clearing his throat before reaching over to shut off Noah's water.

"You're wasting it," he teased, laughing when her jaw fell open.

That's how the rest of their getting clean went: joking and bantering, a few playful splashes of water, some stolen kisses, and soap suds massaged into damp skin. Any awkwardness was forgotten. All the negative, stuffy energy was gone. All that was left was two people who loved one another. Neither paid any attention to the steam that rolled out and filled the bathroom, illuminating the matching handprints left on the mirror...


	24. Which Way is Forward?

**Sorry this has taken so long! UNI has been crazy, but I'm back and I've got more chapters written for more updates! I appreciate all the love so far, and ask if you're still into this story, leave me a comment and let me know! -Hex**

Noah moved through her apartment lazily, plucking laundry from the various locations it had landed the night before during her and Link's romp on the couch. She sighed happily as she meandered into her bedroom, collecting the clothes in her basket and grabbing the detergent from the supply closet. She spotted another one of Link's undershirts peeking out from under her bed. Leaning down to snatch it, a smile quirked at the edges of her mouth.

This felt good. This felt _right_.

Link and Jade had been at her apartment over a week now, and they had all fallen into a sort of domestic routine. He wasn't meant to spend the week with her, but after one night spent apart when he had stayed at Rhett's, that idea hadn't come up again and he had settled into her space just as naturally as if it'd been his own. Little touches of Link bloomed all around her home: his charger and spare glasses found a home on the table to the right of her bed, his toothbrush rested in the bamboo holder on her bathroom counter next to his jar of pomade, some of his clothes found their way into her closet, and his cologne lingered long after he was gone. Even Jade had settled in, napping next to Dorito most days in the sunlight that streamed through the large living room windows.

Noah smiled fondly at the two little animals soaking in the warmth as she moved back into the living room and toward the front door, her destination the laundry room in the basement of her building.

It wasn't either of their intention to causally start living together, and she didn't think it was a permanent thing, but she was enjoying her time having the man to herself most nights. It had been quite a while since she'd allowed another person to inhabit her life so completely. Her last real relationship had been well over a year ago and had been about as toxic as a vault of poison. She was still getting used to Link, used to his kindness, and learning how to trust what he said was true, but every day it got easier.

Noah reached the basement, head still wrapped around this peace she had seemed to find. She guessed it was true what they had said; stop looking for love and it will find you. She thought back to the first day she had met Link, the day he and Rhett had hired her on, and she smiled softly at the thought that the blue-eyed man would become so important to her. She would have lost that bet had it been handed to her years ago, but she was beyond grateful now.

Loading the laundry took only a few minutes, adding the detergent and setting the appliance to start filling with water. Slowly making her way back upstairs, Noah pulled her phone out to check the time and send Link a text. She missed him. It was silly, really, with him only having been gone a few hours, but she did.

He was meeting with his lawyer before going to see his children. They had been back from North Carolina for almost two days, but he wanted legal advice before confronting Christy about her leaving in the first place. It had been really hard for him since they had been gone, and Noah knew that he was torn in half over not chasing them down and bringing them all back home. He had been eager to go see them, wanting to head over as soon as they had landed, but he had held steadfast and not been irrational.

She had spent _a lot_ of time keeping him distracted.

Before Noah had the chance to text him, she saw an unruly amount of notifications from her Instagram. Quirking a brow, Noah tapped the app as she pushed her way back into her apartment. It became immediately clear what had happened: she had been tagged over and over in the picture taken of her and Link at Starbucks, the day he had picked her up from the thrift store. It wasn't so much that the immediate picture was harrowing, but the comments attached to each one reposted over and over by the mythical beasts.

Noah narrowed her eyes, scrolling through the pings and zings of what people were saying, her heart starting to beat fast and hard in her chest.

 _'OMG! Were they on a date!?'_

 _'Link is still wearing his wedding band! Do you think she's the reason he's getting a divorce?'_

 _'I knew it! The way he looked at her in that one episode of More had me wondering what was going on!'_

 _'You guys, we can't come to any conclusions. They work together. They're probably just friends.'_

She didn't understand. This picture had been taken over two months ago! It had been innocent. The beast they had met that day had been so kind, and they hadn't even thought twice about taking a picture with her. In fact, the original picture had been posted almost immediately after being taken and no one had batted an eye at the pair.

If she had to guess, the picture was gaining momentum now, after Link's announcement on Good Mythical More of his divorce had been out for a few days. Everyone had been really kind and supportive, but there were always those that had wanted to know more; the ones that wanted to know why, and how. People needed a reason, to know what had happened between Link and his wife, and she guessed they were making her that reason for now.

WAS she the reason? No, Christy had cheated. But hadn't Link been trying to work it out with the blonde before she came along? Noah's mind started to race around the longer she read the comments. This was no one's business. Not just her relationship, but Link's divorce or the details of it. He was more comfortable in the spotlight, years of conditioning preparing him for that, but she wasn't. She hated being the center of attention. It made her uncomfortable. She knew what she was getting into by dating Link, but she hadn't expected this, the way it was all starting to come to fruition.

He had warned her. Link had said explicitly this sort of thing could happen, and he hadn't wanted to get her involved because of it. She guessed he was right, but if they could just keep their relationship under wraps for just a little longer it would be best all around. His divorce would be final just as soon as custody could be agreed upon and Link was still terrified of Christy going for his jugular as far as his assets went. He didn't need this added stress and frankly, Noah wasn't sure she could handle it.

"Shit," she exclaimed, "I guess this has been the calm before the storm…"

"Don't get ice cream on the seats," Link glanced in his rearview at his youngest holding a dripping cone in the back seat.

"I won't dad, promise."

He smiled as Lando took a big lick of melting chocolate, his eyes finding their way back to the road before him. Lily sat in the back too, happily munching away at her own treat while Lincoln sat shotgun. They had a good time together. Link had picked them up, his heart welling with love when even Lincoln sprinted out the door into his arms. He had glanced up at Christy in the door frame, her eyes set in stone as she watched him take their children for a few hours. He had pushed that aside, opting to focus on making the most of his time with them since it would likely be a few more days until he saw them after this. The thought made him slow the car down just a little.

It had been Hell to leave them be when their mother had hauled them back home for a week. He had wanted to go after them, but his lawyer was right; it looked bad on Christy to take the kids out of school. That didn't balm his heart at all, but at least it meant that he had a little leverage against her in the custody battle if he needed it. He hated that it was coming down to that, but he wasn't willing to only see his kids every other weekend and he'd be damned if they were moved across the country.

"Dad", Lincoln effectively got his attention. "Why aren't you ever home anymore?"

It felt like a sucker punch. He'd expected someone to bring it up, but when they'd gotten through most of their day he'd started to relax. He was planning on talking to them at some point, with Lily still being the most aware of their parent's situation, but he figured he and Christy should do it together after coming to some conclusion about _anything_. He supposed that wasn't going to happen now, and his kids deserved some answers.

Link sucked in a breath before looking briefly at his oldest boy, "It sure seems like that, huh?"

Lincoln shrugged his shoulder, "just miss you is all."

It was barely a mumble, but Link had caught the emotion in his son's voice. Lincoln had been withdrawn lately, choosing to hold out in his bedroom most nights instead of joining the family downstairs for whatever movie they might be watching. It had gotten even worse the past few months, and the older man had found himself without the company of his middle child most times he was home. Link had thought maybe it was just because the boy was getting older, almost a teenager, but now he wasn't so sure. A glance over at the boy confirmed it; Lincoln's baby blues were shiny with unshed tears.

"Hey," Link choked, clearing his throat as his right hand left the steering wheel to rest against his son's leg. "Things been weird lately, but it won't always be weird," he glanced in the mirror at the two in the back, "we're gonna figure this out."

"Someone at school told me you n' mom're getting a divorce," Lincoln sniffed, not missing a beat. "Said they saw it on the show…"

Link actually felt the air around him be sucked from the car. He didn't know why he had never considered that his kids might see his confession when he'd had the bright idea to make it, and right now he was kicking himself in the ass for that dropped ball. Lily might know, or have a better idea than the boys, but all three of them deserved to hear it from their parents and not from someone else. He was angry at himself.

"What's a divorce?" Lando asked around a mouthful of ice-cream, effectively bringing the air crashing back around his father.

"Means mom and dad ain't gonna be married anymore," Lincoln answered, the emotional upcharge gone from his voice, replaced by a smear of anger.

"What?" Lando spiked, leaning forward in his seat and squinting his eyes. Link had to admit, the boy looked so much like Christy, but at this moment, he could see himself reflected in the furrow of his little brow.

Link opened his mouth, but it was Lily he heard speak up before he could answer.

"Lincoln! You can't just tell him that," she reprimanded.

"Well, it's true!" Lincoln shot back, twisting in his seat to yell at his siblings. "They don't love each other anymore, Lily! They don't love us any more!"

"That's not true!" She fired back.

"It is true!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Stop! You're making Lando cry!"

"Bullshit," Lincoln shouted. He swung back around, his arms crossing his chest and a huff of hot air pushing out of his mouth.

"Hey!" Link finally found his voice, throwing a glance over his shoulder to check his blind spot as he pulled the car over and threw it into park. "Lincoln, that ain't a very fair thing to do to your brother-"

"Fair!? It ain't _fair_?" Lincoln's voice grew louder again. "You know what ain't fair, dad? Not telling us that you're leaving mom-"

"That's enough!" Lily yelled from the back, holding Lando, still whimpering, against her side. His chocolate ice cream forgotten as it dripped down his hand.

"Lils," Link did his best to keep his voice calm, looking at his daughter and willing her to stand down. She'd grown so much since this whole mess had started, and he wanted desperately for her to just be a teenager again. "It's okay. I'm here now."

Link looked from one face to another, taking in their small features that were a blend of him and Christy, with Lincoln inheriting the most of his father's genes. He could see the pain in his face, eyes red with tears he fought to hold back. Link knew that pain. He had felt it himself when his own parents had divorced when he was closer to Lando's age. It had screwed him up for a while when his daddy had left, but Link hadn't seen the man again for over a year and he thought maybe that had messed him up even worse. He wouldn't do that to his kids. He wouldn't abandon them.

"Now, I know this ain't easy," Link started, "and I'm sorry. Lincoln, look at me, I'm sorry that you heard about the divorce from someone that ain't me or your mother-"

"-should've been you, since you're the one leavin-"

"-stop," Link was firm. He was trying to keep his cool, he really was, but he was growing impatient and more agitated. Lily had thought back in North Carolina this whole thing was his fault, and now he was being blamed again for the downfall of his marriage. He was tired of the truth being skewed.

"You don't know the whole story Lincoln, n' you don't need to," he continued after a silent beat. "All you need to know is that your mother and I are seperatin', getting' a divorce, that's true. N' it ain't all one or the other's fault. But most important is that I love you, all of you, so does your mom. We're going' through some stuff, but what happens between her n' I ain't gonna change how we feel about you guys."

"Everything is gonna change," Lincoln whispered, and Link realized that his son was unable to hold his tears back anymore. He released his seatbelt in an instant, leaning forward to pull the younger boy into his chest. He felt the small arms come up around him as Lincoln's shoulders shook softly with his quiet crying.

"We'll get through it Lincoln. We'll all get through it, n' yeah it'll be different but I'm here. I'm here."

He squeezed his son tighter, kissing the crown of his head. This sucked. This is what he hadn't wanted to happen. Hurting his kids was his worst nightmare, aside from losing them, and here he was doing just that. Link lifted one arm to reach back to Lily too, squeezing her hand, before finding Lando's hand next…covered in melted chocolate ice-cream.

"What in the world?" Link asked, pulling his hand back as a fit of small giggles broke out from the back seat, breaking through the soft cries and breaking the heaviness that had begun to settle among them.

Even Lincoln laughed at his dad, wiping at his eyes and reaching into the glove box where he knew there was a small package of napkins. Link couldn't help but smile. He felt lighter, the air around the foursome filled with positivity and support after such an intense moment. Suddenly he wasn't so sure what he had been afraid of. He knew they were hurting, all of them, but they'd be able to get past it all.

"Hey dad," Lando asked, a napkin in his dirty little hands, "does this mean we're gonna get twice as many presents for our birthdays and Christmas?"

Link couldn't help but laugh as his other children joined their brother in his inquiry. The banter continued as he pushed the car back into drive and carefully got them back on route to their home. He was so grateful that his kids were stronger than he ever could be. They were so wise, and they were really all the better parts of him and Christy. He knew the hard times were still to come, but after tonight, he trusted that they would all be okay in the end.

His mind drifted to their future, his future and what it might look like with Noah and his kids. He still hadn't talked to Christy about it, but he wanted the red-head to meet his kids sooner than later. He wanted all of this to come full circle, wanted everyone he loved to be together. He wanted to move on and push forward. He'd been staying at Noah's for over a week now, something he'd need to talk to her about, and they'd had a lot of conversations about this moment and what could come after it. She was so supportive, and with her love, he knew he'd be okay. Now, after this moment with his kids, he felt like everything was just getting better and there was hope.

Christy would be damned if she said he couldn't have his girlfriend around his kids after him finding out another man had been under his roof with them. She'd understand eventually, especially since she'd been the biggest hypocrite of them both. Funny, she'd called him one after he'd spent his first night with Noah just to go and do something on the same caliber. Whatever. He was closer to the end now, a light at the end of the tunnel, the kids knew, they'd all lived through that conversation, Noah was waiting for him, and he was okay. Better than okay. It was great!

Link smiled to himself, grateful for this moment of serenity just as his phone started to ding off in his pocket…


	25. The Bathtub

**WARNING: Adult Content near the end of the chapter. If that isn't your thing, you can read until Link gets back to the apartment pretty much. As always, I LOVE hearing from you guys if you're enjoying the content! Leave me a comment. -Hex**

Link gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles, his foot pressing into the gas much harder than he should be considering L.A. traffic. The only solace he took away from his bit of recklessness was that his kids were at home, having dropped them off about 30 minutes ago, so his frustrated driving wasn't putting them in any kind of danger. Just himself, but he was too distracted by the events of the past half hour to really care.

His phone sounding off in his pocket had been just the beginning.

The first few times it had dinged, Link had thought maybe his twitter was trending for some reason or Rhett was doing one of those annoying text block things he did sometimes. When it didn't stop going off, he had reached into his pocket to silent the phone to enjoy the last few moments he had with Lily, Lincoln, and Lando. By the time he'd gotten back to the house, he'd forgotten the phone was on silent anyway.

Then the real fun had started.

Link had gone inside to pack up some more of his things, thinking there wasn't much of a reason to leave behind any of his clothing or his toiletries. He'd bought some new body wash and shampoo, but the stuff he had here was fairly new too. He didn't see a point in leaving it behind. He'd been pleasantly surprised when Lincoln had found his way to his dad's closet, and helped to pull some shirts down to pack up. The conversation had been nice, the two of them laughing together like they used to do before everything fell apart. It felt good, really good. Then Christy had dismissed her older son so she could have a chat with Link, adult to adult.

He supposed it had started out just fine. Christy had let him know that she had gone ahead and taken the liberty to schedule a mediation for them the following week. They both had agreed they would try it this way first, in hopes that maybe they could bypass the whole court hearing thing.

They seemed to be agreeing on most things, Link pausing his packing to sit down and talk about the divorce. He thought they were being smarter about it all, actually seeing eye to eye on things and talking like adults should. There had been no yelling, no cussing, no throwing anything or blaming. He'd considered bringing up the condom wrapper, but he didn't feel like it would be a good idea. Maybe he could leave this time unscathed. Maybe. Maybe…

Then Christy had casually reminded him that she didn't think it was a good idea for their kids to be around Noah until Link thought it was serious.

He'd kept his cool, mentioned it _was_ serious and that if he wanted her to meet them then she would. That's all it had taken; the tension had grown thick and the two of them had fallen back ten steps after taking two forward. The worst part had been when Christy yelled about having to clean handprints off her bathroom mirror when she got home, feeling disrespected by Link even having Noah in their house. Link made sure she had known he had found the condom wrapper. He made sure she knew that he didn't care she had moved on, that she shouldn't care that he did, and it wasn't fair for her to be angry about another woman being in the house when she had brought another man into their home on a number of occasions, at least one of which they were still very much together.

That's when Christy had pulled out her phone, showing Link the picture that he and Noah had taken of them a couple of months back.

"We weren't trying to make it work then?" She had said, mouth pursed and hand shaking just a bit.

Link hadn't known what to say, squinting at the picture before remembering his own phone weighing heavily inside of his back pocket. _Shit._

He had left immediately, flying out of the driveway with a squeal of his tires. He'd tried to call Noah, but she didn't answer. That had done nothing for his mood and had made him head back to her place even faster. He knew that she wasn't one to enjoy being the center of attention. It wasn't that she hated being in the spotlight, rather, she just preferred others to be the focus instead. Link figured that this picture going around, well, the _comments_ about the picture had just made Noah more of a front runner than she had been before and that made him nervous.

Beyond his relationship, Christy could try to use this against him. It'd been like she was trying to get him to admit to something with Noah long before something even happened, physically at least. His heart had loved the girl for a long time but he hadn't acted on that until he was sure his marriage was done. That wouldn't matter to a judge though.

Link parked his car in the spot he'd been using and hopped out, half running to get inside. Noah's car was parked in her usual spot too, so he knew she was here. He hurried into the complex, jamming his thumb against the button on the elevator as soon as he reached it. It didn't come fast enough, and after a beat of his heart Link turned and jogged up the stairs to the second floor. Finding the spare ring on his keychain, the key Noah had given him, he quickly unlocked the door with shaky hands.

He was confused when he pushed inside and she wasn't there after seeing her car out front.

"Babe?" Link called out, moving to slip out of his shoes and toss his keys on the kitchen island. "Noah?"

The pressure against his ankles drew his attention, and Link reached down to scratch at Jade's little head before patting Dorito on his other side. It made him smile that the two opposites had formed some kind of pseudo friendship in the nine days he'd been staying there. His phone sounding off next to his keys reminded him of why he had rushed home to begin with, his heart beating against his chest, and he went back to moving through the small space toward the bedroom.

He saw the flickering of lights staining the walls outside of the bathroom, soft music drifting through the room when he crossed over the doorframe.

"Noah?" Link asked, poking his head into the bathroom before confirming it was her, and coming to stand inside the muggy space. "What in the world?"

Noah was neck-deep in steaming, bubbly water. She had lit a number of candles that smelled like various fruits and eucalyptus, and she had a cucumber over each of her eyes. Her phone was on the sink, playing out some of her favorite indie rock music which explained why she hadn't answered him when he had called. She had heard Link come home, heard him call out for her the first time, but she hadn't felt like yelling back out to him. She knew he would find her in a few minutes anyway.

Lifting a cucumber to peak out at the dark-haired man, Noah finally acknowledged him. "Welcome back."

Link grunt, "what are you doin'?"

"I," Noah popped the same cucumber slice into her mouth, "am escaping for a bit."

"So, you seen it then?" Link moved to lower the toilet seat, sitting down and leaning onto his elbows.

"Mm, I saw it," Noah told him around a mouthful of vegetables. "I don't wanna talk about it right now though."

"You okay, at least?" He asked, watching as she took a bite out of the other cucumber slice.

"Do I look okay?" She bit back sarcastically.

"Look, I rushed back here to check on you," Link told her.

Noah looked at him, really looked at him, and noticed the strain on his face and the way he searched her own face for any sign she really wasn't okay. In reality, Noah didn't know if she was but she wasn't about to tell Link that. Especially not right now. She knew what she was doing, disassociating from the situation, wasn't a healthy coping mechanism but right now she didn't care. She wasn't ready yet. Right now, she just wanted to stay in this bathtub and let herself turn into a prune.

Then Link let out a sigh and ran his hand through his hair, his bicep rippling with the motion, and she had a different idea.

"We can talk about it later," Noah offered, letting a knee rise above the soap suds, "but right now you should join me in this bathtub and forget for a little bit too."

Link glanced over to the girl, a dark brow arching over the frame of his glasses when he noticed the smooth skin she had let peek out from under the water, her fingers skimming across the wet flesh. He was tempted, that's for sure, but he wasn't feeling much like a bath. He'd rather get her out and forget awhile in her bedroom if he was being honest.

"I ain't gettin' in that tub-"

"Oh come on," she pushed herself into a seated position, the slick bubbles sliding against her skin. "I'm not ready to face this, not yet."

He studied her, the green in her eyes reflecting the soft flicker of orange dancing around the room from the candles. Her skin did the same, the light and shadow creating their own story across her body. He felt warm, heat starting to build in his body from more than just the humid air clinging to his clothes.

"Wouldn't you rather come out here?" He tried, standing and glancing down at her looking amused.

"What? You too good for the bathtub?" She teased, flicking some water in his direction.

"Hey!" He hollered, checking out the beads that had wet his shirt. She winked at him, slipping back under the surface of the water and popping back up with her hair slicking back on top of her head.

"I mean, I know it doesn't have two showerheads or anything, but it's nice and deep…"

"Okay! Okay," he told her, rolling his eyes as he reached up to grab at his shirt and pull it above his head when it became clear what her intentions were. "You win, then."

He knew what she was doing. He knew that she was trying to keep him distracted so that neither of them would have to face this shit swirling around the internet right now. He couldn't get mad since he himself was the king of avoidance, but it was definitely important and would need addressed eventually.

Link watched her, watching him, as he moved to shed the rest of his clothing. She had that pouty bottom lip pulled between her teeth as she gazed up at him. He supposed if she kept looking at him like that, avoiding the chaotic stuff would be okay for a while longer anyway since he could almost never resist her like this.

"Well move over then," he mumbled, watching as a smile broke out across her pretty face.

Noah shifted her weight forward, allowing Link to slip in behind her. He hissed a little as he lowered himself into the hot water, easing into the space she had made for him at the back of the tub. He brought his knees on either side of her body as she sunk back against his chest. With both of them submerged, the water teetered dangerously near the top of the tub but neither seemed to notice. If they did, they didn't care.

Link immediately felt himself start to relax. He hadn't realized just how tense he'd been leading up to this, but he was grateful. He could smell the essential oils she had dropped into the water, mixing with the steam, and he allowed himself to relax even further. Link wasn't one to enjoy baths regularly, at least he hadn't been before, but with Noah's naked body sliding up against his he thought he might learn to love them more if they were going to be like this.

"See," she sighed, "isn't this nice?"

"Mm," Link hummed, bringing an arm around her and pulling her even closer to him.

"Tell me something I don't know," Noah stated simply after a moment of comfortable silence.

"Like what?" He asked her, a hand coming to twirl some of her wet hair around his finger.

"Anything," she answered, her eyes fluttering shut as his fingers worked her scalp softly.

"Anything? That's a big order."

"Something about you," she clarified.

Link rested his head back against the curve of her tub. She wanted to know something about him that she didn't. That was a tough one. He talked pretty candidly about himself on GMM, even more so on Ear Biscuits and they'd talked about themselves quite a bit in conversation. Then he started thinking about when he was younger, and all of the crazy shenanigans he used to get into with Rhett. One memory, in particular, jumped out at him, and he let out a small chuckle that rumbled his chest under Noah's head.

"Tell me," she encouraged, her head nestling into his touch.

"'M just thinkin' bout this one time, Rhett n' I were down by the river," Link started, chuckling to himself before continuing. "We went swimming. It was so hot that day, n' I remember we thought it'd be funny if we skinny-dipped. Well, there were some older girls showed up, they were eighth-graders. They uh, they stole our clothes right off the river bank. We had to ride our bikes home naked as the day we were born. Wasn't funny at the time, but lookin' back now I can't help it but laugh."

He felt her shake just a little as her own laugh pushed through her lips, "wow, I can't even imagine. Did anyone see you guys?"

"Well yeah!" He told her, picking his head up and glancing at her where she rested near his collar bone. "We stuck to the woods as much as we could, but there were some eyes that caught us. We even got a honk as we crossed the main road over to the village side of town."

"Aw, those mean girls."

"They were! It was the only time I ever streaked against my will."

"Oh yeah? You've streaked more than that?"

Link winked at her, some college memories coming around that involved Rhett and their roommate Greg. She stretched her neck, kissing the corner of his mouth before sinking back into the water.

"Now there's something I definitely didn't know," she guffawed. "Gotta hear those stories too."

"You will," he assured her. "We got all the time in the world for story tellin."

She hummed her agreement.

"You gotta share, too," he instructed. "What's somethin' I don't know about you?"

"I'm allergic to pineapple," she told him without hesitation.

"I give you a whole story n' you tell me you're allergic to pineapple?" He poked at her, playfully pinching at her side under the water.

"Hey!" She swat at him, a little water running over the edge of the tub. "I just asked for something I didn't know. It could've been anything!"

Link shook his head before reaching for her and bringing her back flush against him.

"You'n get away with it this time, since knowin' that is pretty important. 'Specially if I wanna get back at you for somethin' someday," he teased her, implying he would use the fruit in his favor.

"You would not!" She mocked surprise, turning in his lap to get a better look at him.

Link only shrugged, the corner of his mouth quirking up into a smirk. Noah's eyes searched his face before her eyes connected back with his and she squint. He felt her shift against him a little, her skin slick and sliding against parts of him that immediately began sparking to life under the surface of the bubbles.

"You wanna keep talkin'?" He challenged, his fingers coming up to dust along the skin of her shoulders and down to her collarbone. Her eyes darkened, lashes falling heavy over emerald orbs as she gazed at him.

"We have all the time in the world for that," she mocked his earlier sentiment, earning her a snicker.

Noah twisted her body around, moving carefully in the water but sloshing some onto the floor nonetheless. She would worry about that later because right now Link's big hands were sliding up and down her back. She couldn't focus on anything else. She carefully slid onto his lap, feeling his semi-hard erection come to rest against her thigh.

"What you wanna do instead?" He half asked, his own eyes shifting as Noah's hands slid up his chest, scraping against his neck before carding through his hair.

"You want me to tell you, or you want me to show you?"

Noah leaned in close, giving Link's hair a small tug near the nape of his neck to get his head to fall back. She planted a well-placed kiss against the strong curve of his jaw.

Link grunt, "thought we were done talkin'."

Noah moved her kisses down the line of his neck, across to his ear before she sunk her teeth into him. She knew his neck was sensitive, driving him mad when she worked it with her mouth and tongue. Him growing completely hard underneath her only confirmed that notion.

Link sighed as his hands traveled down and over Noah's bum, squeezing the round flesh and pulling her impossibly closer. That's when she lifted her head, and their mouths met for the first time in a blazing hot kiss. Bodies slick with water, fitting together like puzzle pieces. Hard and soft at the same time, tongues and teeth. Noah's body buzzed with anticipation as Link moved beneath her, slipping further down the tub to plant his feet in the corners as she slid against him, his cock sliding between her folds.

Noah huffed, a stream of hot air coming through her nose as she rose herself up enough to allow Link to push inside of her. His moan vibrated against her mouth, but she swallowed it down as they connected pelvis to pelvis. She loved being on top, Link fitting snug inside of her deep and solid.

They found a rhythm together, Link using the bevels of the tub to give him leverage as he pushed up inside of her. Noah used Link's broad shoulders as she broke their kiss, sitting fully upright and rolling her hips against him.

"Ah, mmm," she groaned, her lip pulling between her teeth as her head fell back.

Link used the opportunity to grip her hips, fingertips digging into the soft flesh as he used his own strength to lift her and bring her back crashing against him. Noah's fingernails dug into Link's shoulders before finding his biceps. She was so turned on by the hard muscles flexing with every move, overwhelmingly hot as she steam swirled around them to mix with the heady sounds of sex and water sloshing in every which way.

Bodies met, again and again with force. Link's toes curled against the porcelain while Noah's brow furrowed and her eyes screwed shut as she chased her orgasm. Rolling and twisting, grinding and pounding, in and out and all around as the water soaked into the rugs on the floor and Link's jeans he had shed. That didn't matter as the two in the tub were all hands and wet, slick skin and movement.

"Come here," Link bit out, leaning forward to snatch Noah's lip into his mouth.

She fell forward against him at the force, grunting and gasping as the change in angle had him hitting her sweet spot with every thrust up. Her forehead rested against his, lightly knocking against him as her groaning started to grow louder. She was so warm, inside and out, ripples of pleasure beginning to spread out from deep inside of her core. She was getting close, open-mouth panting hot air and eyes growing unfocused as her lids fell closed.

"So…close…" It was barely a whisper, falling out of her mouth on the tips of her husky breathing.

Link's hands came up to tangle in her hair, tipping her head back with a tug as he pushed up into her with a sharp snap of his hips. Her eyes rolled back in her head as her orgasm hit her like a ton of bricks and she came hard and fast, his mouth pulling one of her peach buds into his mouth and biting down. The air was squeezed out of her lungs as her thighs stilled and quivered, muscles contracting. She rode the wave as long as she could until the air crashed back into her lungs and she found her voice again, a loud curse and a prayer as Link continued to fuck up into her in search of his own release.

As soon as her muscles unlocked, Noah started moving in time with him again, bouncing on top of him with a sort of reckless abandon. She drug her nails down his chest, bracing against his taut abdomen as his breath grew shallow. Link was getting closer, the familiar tingle starting at the base of his spine. His eyes drank in Noah's body, glistening as she rolled against him.

She recognized that look in his eye, he was going to cum. She loved it when he looked so wild, his hair damp and untamed. She could cum again just watching him as he lost all control. His thrusting became erratic, his breathing coming out in short, harsh gasps. Noah ground down on him, watching his face twist and knit with unabashed pleasure. He reached for her, pulling her tight against him with one arm as his other palmed her ass and held it as he pushed up into her once, twice, a third time before he stilled and released himself inside of her with a loud moan.

The heat in the bathroom was almost too much for both of them, making it difficult to catch their breaths as it came out in short bursts. Noah thought he might've gripped her cheek hard enough to bruise, but she was too lost in the bliss and steam to focus too much on it. So, she rested against his chest as he trailed a finger up and down her spine and rested his head against the back of the tub again.

"Hm, I think we made a mess," Noah muttered, her voice shaky against the tender skin of Link's neck.

"Good thing we're already in the tub then," he told her, continuing his slow trail against the bumps of her back.

She laughed, short and sweet, "but the water isn't".

Link lifted his head with some difficulty, it felt heavy and out of sorts. Noah was right. The tub was only about half full, and every single bubble was gone. The rest of the water had spilled over during their steamy little bathtub romp, leaving the tiled floor glossy and wet as the candlelight threw shades of orange across the surface. He'd worry about that later. Right now, his body was sore and exhausted so he opted to relax back against the tub again.

"I don't care," he stated simply. She sighed, content with that.

Link stared at the ceiling as he continued to feel Noah's soft skin, her weight a comfort against him and her breath sweet and calming. He was always grateful for these quiet moments, both of them lost and in love as they came back down after making love. He felt her heartbeat against his. If only he could turn his brain off too…

"You know we still need to talk about it, right?" He asked her quietly, feeling her stiffen under his gentle caresses.

"I, yeah, I know," she answered. "But it can wait a little longer."

Link didn't answer, picking to keep his mouth shut for once. He held her close, only moving to slide out of her and place a kiss to the crown of her head. He wouldn't let her avoid their picture fiasco forever, but he would let her have a few more minutes of peace first. Besides, he needed some more time to gather his own thoughts too. It was okay, he was okay. They would be okay.

Wouldn't they?


End file.
